Shloka 5.41.18
प्रमदावनविध्वंसः | The Devastation of the Pleasure-Garden (Ashoka Vatika)
नानाशकुन्तविरुतैः प्रभिन्नैस्सलिलाशयैः।ताम्रैः किसलयैः क्लान्तै: क्लान्तद्रुमलतायुतम्।।5.41.17।।न बभौ तद्वनं तत्र दावानलहतं यथा।व्याकुलावरणा रेजुर्विह्वला इव ता लताः।।5.41.18।।
nānā-śakunta-virutaiḥ prabhinnais salilāśayaiḥ |
tāmraiḥ kisalayaiḥ klāntaiḥ klānta-druma-latā-yutam ||
na babhau tad vanaṃ tatra dāvānala-hataṃ yathā |
vyākulāvaraṇā rejur vihvalā iva tā latāḥ ||
With birds crying out in many ways, its ponds shattered, and its copper-red tender shoots withered—filled with exhausted trees and creepers—this grove no longer shone; it looked as though scorched by a forest fire. The creepers trembled, as if women in distress with their garments thrown into disorder.
Vines and trees wilted, birds shrieking, the embankments of ponds destroyed, its tender coppery red shoots withered, the garden looked as though it is burnt by forest fire and the climbers looked like women shivering in fear with their robes disarrayed.
The verse poetically reflects how violence and oppression (embodied by Laṅkā’s regime) radiate suffering outward; dharma-sensitive narration makes the cost visible even in nature’s imagery.
A detailed description of the grove after devastation—sounds, broken ponds, withered shoots, and trembling creepers—emphasizes total ruin.
Indirectly, Hanumān’s unstoppable force; narratively, the poet’s ethical sensitivity in portraying destruction as grave and consequential.