Hari Om.
Let us begin the forty first sarga of the sundara kAnDam by offering our prostrations at the lotus feet of SrIrAma and our sathguru.
Having accomplished the mission of finding sItA, conveying the message of rAma to her and conferring solace on her through his extremely articulate and convincing speech, hanumAn was ready to return. sItA, who experienced hope for the first time in ten months was a touch sad as hanumAn sought her permission to leave. Although hanumAn was very sure of the seize of lanka and mounting an offensive on lanka along with rAma, lakshmaNa and the large vAnara army led by sugrIva, the sheer enormity of the task unnerved her. She wondered if someone other than hanumAn can accomplish this feat of crossing lanka. However, hanumAn assured her of the big names in sugrIva’s ranks and said if he could do this much, they could do a lot more!!! It sounded like a hyperbole perhaps, but gave the confidence to sItA in the enterprising abilities of the vAnara army to come and seize lanka. She conveyed her message to rAma one more time and gave the permission to hanumAn to start. And then hanumAn…. Onwards…
…having been praised elaborately by sItA left the place where he met her, moved aside and began to entertain a few thoughts about an unfinished task after having located and seen sItA. In order to achieve the unfinished task he thought in himself that the first three approaches are unlikely to yield appropriate results and hence he must resort to the fourth approach and thought –
“Demons would refuse to engage in the first approach of peaceful dialogue (sAma). The wealthy demons would not care at all for the second approach of charity (dAna). Proud of their might, they may not yield to the third approach of causing dissension (bhEda) amongst them. Therefore, the fourth approach of showing my power might be the only way to engage with them.
अल्पशेषमिदं कार्यं दृष्टेयमसितेक्षणा।
त्रीनुपायानतिक्रम्य चतुर्थ: इह विद्यते।।5.41.2।।
न साम रक्षस्सु गुणाय कल्पते न दानमर्थोपचितेषु युज्यते।
न भेदसाध्या बलदर्पिता जनाः पराक्रमस्त्वेव ममेह रोचते।।5.41.3।।
To get a fair idea of their strength, no other way than showing my power would work. If I beat up a few of their demons, they might yield to a fight and I might get an idea of how strong they are. One can indeed go on and achieve much more than what was entrusted to him as long as the other achievements do not derail the original goal.
कार्ये कर्मणि निर्दिष्टे यो बहून्यपि साधयेत्।
पूर्वकार्याविरोधेन स कार्यं कर्तुमर्हति।।5.41.5।।
For a doer, there are more than one way of achieving even a trivial task. Only one who knows of many ways of doing something is capable achieving the goal. If I ascertain right her the relative strengths of the demons and vAnaras and then return to the abode of the vAnaras, I would have properly accomplished the order of my lord sugrIva. I wonder how a combat of mine with the demons will result in a happy ending but that could be the only way for the ten-headed demon to gauge my strength in a battle. I will then estimate the strength of rAvaNa along with that of his ministers and army. Only after grasping the strength and weakness of enemy I can be at peace when I return from here!
This lovely grove of the evil rAvaNa with its foliage and blooms is a feast to the eyes and the mind like the nadana gardens of kubEra and is dear to him. I will wreck this grove like the wildfire destroys the forest. The ten-headed will be livid when I destroy this. And when I do so he will send army comprising of elephants, horses and chariots and infantry wielding spears and tridents and a great battle will ensue. I will unleash my immeasurable valour on those fierce demons and vanquish the forces sent by rAvaNa and then happily go to the abode of the vAnaras”.
Then the extremely valorous hanumAn with anger and pursuit of a terrible storm moved about with great strength in his limbs and began to uproot the trees in the grove and destroyed the grove that was home to variety of creepers, blooms and birds that sang in an intoxicating manner. In a few moments, the grove with felled trees, broken banks of water bodies, destroyed mountaintops became an eye sore! As the destruction was unleashed, birds screeched, ponds transgressed the broken banks, creepers were unhinged and the entire grove looked like wildfire had swept it. The grove indeed seemed to a woman in distress!
The museums and arbours were demolished, serpents and beats were let loose, other homes in the grove upstaged the destruction of the grove was very significant. By the sheer might of the vAnara, the entire pleasure grove and the women’s resort of the ten headed demon filled with aSokAtrees lay in utter disarray with the creepers thrown all over the place and they seemed to radiating sorrow. Thus the great hanumAn dent the ego of the lord of the lanka and determined to fight alone no matter how many descend, he went and settled on an arch spitting fire and glory.
स तस्य कृत्वार्थपतेर्महाकपिर्महद्व्यलीकं मनसो महात्मनः।
युयुत्सुरेको बहुभिर्महाबलैश्शिया ज्वलंस्तोरणमास्थितः कपिः।।5.41.21।।
Here we conclude the forty first sarga of the sundara kAnDam of SrImath vAlmiKi rAmAyaNam and humbly offer it at the lotus feet of SrIrAma. Hari: Om!
jAi SrIrAma.
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Next: 5.42. Victory be to the supremely mighty rAma…
Previous: 5.40. sItA sets the time limit
rAmabhaktisAmrAjyam 
