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—_——Eee—eee— Anp to Khara deprived of his car standing with a mace n his hand, that exceedingly energetic one, Rama, preluding tis speech with mildness, spake, “Backed by this mighty iost abounding in elephants and horses and cars, thou hast lone an exceedingly- wicked deed, execrated by all the vorids. Even if one happen to be the lord of the three vorlds, one given to troubling creatures, and who is cruel nd engaged in wicked acts, can not exist. All persons estroy, like a snake that hath intruded itself, him that doth ruel deeds, hostile to the interests of every one. People ‘elightedly behold the end of him that doing an action either rom covetuousness or desire, doth not like a Brahmain wallowing a Karaka, see the consequence thereof. What, ) R&kshasa, dost thou gain by slaughtering exceedingly ious asceties engaged in righteous acts, living in the forest f Dandaka? Like unto trees whose roots have been reduced, ruel persons, execrated of men, who perpetrate iniquitous cts, do not exist long. And asa tree puts forth blossoms n season, the doer of sinful deeds, at the hour (of repentance) nevitably reaps their fruit in the shape of dreadful anguish of the spirit). And, O ranger of night, as the effect of aving taken rice mixed with poison, appears without delay, ven so also people readily reap the fruit of their own acts. ) ranger of the night, it is to take the lives of the perpetraors of dreadful sins, who wish ill unto men, that I the king ave come. Today the gold-decked arrows discharged by 1e, piercing (thy body), shall enter into the earth, cleaving t, like serpents falling into an ant-hill. Slain in battle, thou halt in company with thy army, follow those people practis- 1g piety, whom thou hast devoured in the Dandaka forest. ‘oday let those great saints, who had formerly been slain by hee, stationed in the sky, behold thee slain (in turn) with my

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arrows, and inhabiting hell. Do thou strike as thou lik And thou that art of an odious race, do thou put forth energy. Today I will bring down thy head, even as a p falls to the ground.’’ Thus addressed by Rama, Kl enraged and beyond himself with passion, with eyes redder replied, “O son of Dagaratha, why having slain infe Rakshasas in battle, dost thou praise thyself without reas Those foremost of men that are puissant and powerful not, inflated with their energy, mouth (their own co: quence). It is the mean-minded Kshatriyas of impure he that magnify themselves among men, even as tl O Rama, dost. What hero, when the hour of his death | approached, publishes in the field his own lofty lineage sings his own hymn. As brass wearing the semblanc gold, displays its own defect on being heated,* with a lit with Kuga, t so thou hast betrayed thy own lightness this speech of thine. Thou dost not see me staying | mace in hand, like a moveless mountain dyed in me bearing mobile and immobile things. I can, mace in h deprive thee and the three worlds to boot clean of your li like the very Destroyer with the noose in his hand. FE will not parley much with thee as much as I could wish: sun is going to set, and our fight shall be interrupted. F teen thousand R&kshasas have been slaughtered by thee will for their deaths wipe their tears to-day.” Saying Khara, highly enraged, hurled his macet provided golden rings at Rama, like unto the blazing thunder Thereat, reducing to ashes trees and shrubs, that mi: flaming mace, discharged by Khara’s arm, fell be Rama. And Rama severed in many fragments that mi; mace, resembling the noose of Death, as ascending welkin, it was coming down. Thereupon, like a she-ser, * te. becomes dusky,'as Rimanuya intelligently remarks. —T. + Another reading is, /it with husks, - { Another reading ts, platted with gold.

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‘brought down by force of incantations, the mace fell to the = earth shattered and riven. ee A Pe w