Ramayana — Yuddha Kanda, Sarga 60, Shloka 45
कुम्भकर्णविबोधनम्
The Awakening of Kumbhakarna
निजघ्नुश्चास्यगात्राणिमहाकाष्ठकङ्करैः ।।।।मुद्गरैर्मुसलैश्चापिसर्वप्राणसमुद्यतैः ।
nijaghnuś cāsya gātrāṇi mahākāṣṭhakaṅkaraiḥ |
mudgarair musalaiś cāpi sarvaprāṇasamudyataiḥ ||
彼らは全力を振り絞り、巨大な木の棍棒、重い杖、木槌、杵で彼の手足を打ち据えた。
The city of Lanka including the woods was filled with that noise. They pushed him with mallets with all their strength, but he did not wake up.
FAQs
Dharma here is indirect: it highlights human (and rākṣasa) effort and duty-bound urgency in crisis—yet also shows that brute force alone cannot override the deeper law of karma/curse that governs outcomes.
The rākṣasas attempt to awaken the sleeping giant Kumbhakarṇa by physically striking him with heavy implements.
Collective resolve and exertion (udyama) is emphasized—an intense, coordinated effort to fulfill a wartime necessity.
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