The Kathá Sarit Ságara; or, Ocean of the Streams of Story

by active 11th century Somadeva Bhatta

While Indra was saying this, fourteen great warriors came to assist the general Dámodara,—Brahmagupta and Váyubala, and Yamadanshṭra, and Suroshaṇa, and Roshávaroha, and Atibala, and Tejaḥprabha, and Dhurandhara, and Kuveradatta, and Varuṇaśarman, and Kámbalika, and the hero Dushṭadamana, and Dohana and Árohaṇa. And those fifteen heroes, joined with Dámodara, fighting in front of the line, kept off the followers of Súryaprabha. Then single combats took place between them; Prakampana carried on a missile fight with Dámodara, and Dhúmraketu fought with Brahmagupta, and Mahámáya fought with Atibala, the Dánava Kálakampana fought with Tejaḥprabha, and the great Asura Marudvega with Váyubala, and Vajrapanjara fought with Yamadanshṭra, and the heroic Asura Kálachakra with Suroshaṇa; Pramathana fought with Kuveradatta, and the king of the Daityas, named Sinhanáda, with Varuṇaśarman. Pravahana fought with Dushṭadamana, and the Dánava Prahṛishtaroman fought with Roshávaroha; and Vikaṭáksha fought with Dhurandhara, Kambala fought with Kámbalika, and Kunjarakumáraka with Árohaṇa, and Prahasta with Dohana, who was also called Mahotpáta.

When these pairs of warriors were thus fighting in the front of the line, Sunítha said to Maya, “Alas! observe, our heroic warriors, though skilled in the use of many weapons, have been prevented by these antagonists from entering the enemies’ line; but Prabhása entered before recklessly alone, so we do not know what will become of him there.” When Suvásakumára heard this, he said, “All the gods, Asuras, and men in the three worlds are not a match for this Prabhása unaided, much less then are these Vidyádharas. So why do you fear without reason, though you know this well enough?”

While the hermit’s son was saying this, the Vidyádhara Kálakampana came to meet Prabhása in fight. Then Prabhása said to him, “Ha! Ha! you have rendered me a great service, so let me now see your valour here.” Saying this, Prabhása let fly at him a succession of arrows, and Kálakampana in return showered sharp arrows upon him. Then that Vidyádhara and that man fought together with arrows and answering arrows, making the worlds astonished. Then Prabhása with a sharp arrow struck down the banner of Kálakampana, with a second he killed his charioteer, with four more his four horses, and with one more he cut his bow in half, with two more he cut off his hands, with two more his arms, and with two more his two ears, and with one sharp-edged arrow he cut off the head of his foe, and thus displayed wonderful dexterity. Thus Prabhása, as it were, chastised Kálakampana, being angry with him because he had slain so many heroes in his own army. And the men and Asuras, when they saw that Vidyádhara chief slain, raised a shout, and the Vidyádharas immediately proclaimed their despondency.[1]

Then a king of the Vidyádharas, named Vidyutprabhá, lord of the hill of Kálanjara, in wrath attacked Prabhása. When he was fighting with Prabhása, Prabhása first cut asunder his banner, and then kept cutting his bows in two, as fast as he took them up. Then the Vidyádhara, being ashamed, by his delusive power flew up invisible into the sky, and rained swords, clubs, and other weapons upon Prabhása. Prabhása, for his part, swept away his succession of missiles with others, and by the illuminating weapon made that Asura manifest, and then employing the weapon of fire, he burned up Vidyutprabhá with its blaze, and bringing him down from the heaven, laid him dead on the earth.

When Śrutaśarman saw this, he said to his warriors, “Observe, this man has slain two chiefs of hosts of great warriors. Now why do you put up with it? Join together and slay him.” When they heard that, eight warriors in anger surrounded Prabhása. One was a king of the Vidyádharas named Úrdhvaroman, a lord of hosts of warriors, dwelling in the great mountain named Vankaṭaka. And the second warrior was a chief of the Vidyádharas named Vikrośana, the king of the rock Dharaṇídhara. And the third was the hero Indramálin, a prince of the Vidyádharas, lord of a host of distinguished warriors, and his home was the mountain Lílá. And the fourth was an excellent Vidyádhara named king Kákaṇḍaka, a chief of a host of warriors, and his dwelling was in the mountain Malaya. And the fifth was Darpaváha by name, lord of the hill Niketa, and the sixth was Dhúrtavyayana the lord of the mountain Anjana, and both these Vidyádharas were chiefs of excellent warriors. And the seventh one, whose chariot was drawn by asses, was named Varáhasvámin, king of the mount Kumuda, and he was chief of a host of great warriors. And the eighth warrior was like him, Medhávara king of Dundhubhi. Prabhása repelled the numerous arrows, which these eight came and discharged, and he pierced them all at the same time with arrows. And he slew the horse of one, and of one the charioteer, and he cut in half the banner of one, and he cleft the bow of another. But Medhávara he struck at the same time with four arrows in the heart, and at once laid him dead on the earth. And then he fought with the others, and cut off with an anjalika[2] the head of Úrdhvaroman with its curled and plaited hair, and of the other six he killed the horses and charioteers, and at last laid themselves low, cutting off their heads with crescent-headed arrows. And then a rain of flowers fell on his head from heaven, encouraging the kings of the Asuras, and discouraging the Vidyádharas. Then four more great warriors, armed with bows, sent by Śrutaśarman, surrounded Prabhása; one was named Kácharaka, the lord of the mountain Kuraṇḍa; the second Diṇḍimálin, whose home was the hill of Panchaka, and the third was Vibhávasu, king of the mountain Jayapura, the fourth was named Dhavala, the ruler of Bhúmituṇḍika. Those excellent Vidyádharas, chiefs of hosts of great warriors, let fly five hundred arrows at the same time at Prabhása. But Prabhása easily disposed of all, one by one, each with eight arrows; with one arrow he cut down the banner, with one cleft the bow, with one he killed the charioteer, with four the horses, and with one more he cut off the head of the warrior, and then shouted triumphantly.

Then another four Vidyádharas, by the order of Śrutaśarman, assembled in fight against Prabhása. The first was named Bhadrankara, dark as the blue water-lily, sprung from Mercury in the house[3] of Viśvávasu, but the second was Niyantraka like the fire in brightness, sprung from Mars in the house of Jambaka, and the third was called Kálakopa, very black in hue, with tawny hair, sprung from Saturn in the house of Dámodara. And the fourth was Vikramaśakti, like gold in brightness, sprung from the planet Jupiter in the house of the Moon. The three first were lords of hosts of lords of hosts of transcendent warriors, but the fourth was a great hero surpassing the rest in valour. And those haughty chiefs attacked Prabhása with heavenly weapons. Prabhása repelled their weapons with the weapon of Náráyaṇa, and easily cut asunder the bow of each eight times; then he repelled the arrows and clubs which they hurled, and slaying their horses and charioteers, deprived them all of their chariots. When Śrutaśarman saw that, he quickly sent other ten lords of the Vidyádharas, chiefs of lord of hosts of lords of hosts of warriors, two called Dama and Niyama, who exactly resembled one another in appearance, two sons born to the Aśvins in the house of the lord of Ketumálá, and Vikrama and Sankrama, and Parákrama and Ákrama, and Sammardana and Mardana, and Pramardana and Vimardana, the eight similar sons of the Vasus born in the house of Makaranda. And when they came, the previous assailants mounted other chariots. Wonderful to say, though all those fourteen joined together, and showered arrows on Prabhása, he alone fought with them fearlessly. Then, by the order of Súryaprabha, Kunjarakumára and Prahasta left the mêlée and flying up from the front of the line, weapons in hand, white and black in hue, came to the aid of Prabhása, like Ráma and Kṛishṇa over again. They, though fighting on foot, harassed Dama and Niyama, by cutting asunder their bows and killing their charioteers. When they, in their fear, soared up to heaven, Kunjarakumára and Prahasta soared up also, weapons in hand. When Súryaprabha saw that, he quickly sent them his ministers Mahábuddhi and Achalabuddhi to act as charioteers. Then Prahasta and Kunjarakumára discovered, by employing magic collyrium, those two sons of the Vidyádharas, Dama and Niyama, though they had made themselves invisible by magic power, and riddled them so with showers of arrows that they fled. And Prabhása, fighting with the other twelve, cleft all their bows asunder, though they kept continually taking fresh ones. And Prahasta came and killed at the same time the charioteers of all, and Kunjarakumára slew their horses. Then those twelve together, being deprived of their chariots, and finding themselves smitten by three heroes, fled out of the battle.

Then Śrutaśarman, beside himself with grief, anger and shame, sent two more Vidyádharas, captains of hosts of warriors and distinguished warriors; one was called Chandragupta born in the house of the lord of the great mountain Chandrakula, beautiful as a second moon, and the second was his own minister named Narangama, of great splendour, born in the house of the lord of the mountain Dhurandhara. They also, after discharging a shower of arrows, were in a moment deprived of their chariots by Prabhása and his comrades, and disappeared.

Then the men and Asuras shouted for joy; but thereupon Śrutaśarman came himself, with four great warriors of mighty force, named Mahaugha, Árohaṇa, Utpáta and Vetravat, the sons respectively of Tvashṭṛi,[4] Bhaga, Aryaman and Púshan, born in the houses of the four Vidyádhara kings, Chitrapada and others, that ruled over mount Malaya. And Śrutaśarman himself, blinded with furious anger, was the fifth, and they all fought against Prabhása and his two companions. Then the host of arrows, which they shot at one another, seemed like a canopy spread in the sky by the Fortune of war in the full blaze of the sun. Then those other Vidyádharas, who had been deprived of their chariots, and had fled from the battle, came back into the fight.

Then Súryaprabha, seeing many of them assembled in fight, under the leadership of Śrutaśarman, sent other great warriors of his own to support Prabhása and his comrades, his own friends with Prajnáḍhya at their head, and the princes of whom Śatáníka and Vírasena were the chief. They flew through the air, and Súryaprabha sent the other warriors also through the air in the chariot Bhutásána. When all those archers had gone chariot-borne, the other Vidyádhara kings, who were on the side of Śrutaśarman, also came up. Then a fight took place between those Vidyádhara princes on the one side, and Prabhása and his comrades on the other, in which there was a great slaughter of soldiers. And in the single combats between the two hosts, many warriors were slain on both sides, men, Asuras, and Vidyádharas. Vírasena slew Dhúmralochana and his followers; but having been deprived of his chariot, he was in his turn killed by Hariśarman. Then the Vidyádhara hero Hiraṇyáksha was killed by Abhimanyu, but Abhimanyu and Haribhaṭa were slain by Sunetra. And Sunetra was killed by Prabhása, who cut off his head. And Jválámálin and Maháyu killed one another. But Kumbhíraka and Nirásaka fought with their teeth, after their arms were cut off, and so did Kharva and the mighty Suśarman. And the three, Śatrubhaṭa, Vyághrabhaṭa, and Sinhabhaṭa were slain by Pravahana, the Vidyádhara king. Pravahana was killed by the two warriors Suroha and Viroha, and those two were slain by Sinhabala, the dweller in the cemetery. That very Sinhabala, whose chariot was drawn by ghosts, and Kapilaka, and Chitrápíḍa the Vidyádhara king, and Jagajjvara, and the hero Kántápati, and the mighty Suvarṇa, and the two Vidyádhara kings Kámaghana and Krodhapati, and king Baladeva and Vichitrápíḍa, these ten were slain by the prince Śatáníka. When these heroes had been slain, Śrutaśarman, beholding the slaughter of the Vidyádharas, himself attacked Śatáníka in his anger. Then a terrible fight took place between those two, lasting to the close of the day, and causing a great slaughter of soldiers, exciting the wonder even of the gods, and it continued until hundreds of corpses, rising up all round, laid hold of the demons as their partners, when the time arrived for the joyous evening dance. At the close of day the Vidyádharas, depressed at the great slaughter of their army, and grieved at the death of their friends, and the men and Asuras having won the victory by sheer force stopped the combat, and went each of them to their own camps.

At that time two Vidyádharas, chiefs of captains of bands of warriors, who had deserted the cause of Śrutaśarman, came, introduced by Sumeru, and said to Súryaprabha, after bowing before him: “We are named Maháyána and Sumáya, and this Sinhabala was the third of us; we had obtained magic power by having the rule of a great cemetery, and were unassailable by the other Vidyádharas. While we, such as you have heard, were once taking our ease in a corner of the great cemetery, there came to us a good witch named Śarabhánaná, of great and godlike power, who is always well disposed towards us. We bowed before her and asked her, ‘Where have you been, honoured lady, and what have you seen there strange?’ She thereupon related this adventure.”