Shloka 34

लङ्कादाहः — The Burning of Lanka

Catuḥpañcāśaḥ Sargaḥ

Devanagari script

तत्राम्बरादग्निरतिप्रवृद्धो रूक्षप्रभः किंशुकपुष्पचूडः।निर्वाणधूमाकुलराजयश्च नीलोत्पलाभाः प्रचकाशिरेऽभ्राः।।।।

Transliteration

tatrāmbarād agnir atipravṛddho rūkṣaprabhaḥ kiṁśukapuṣpa-cūḍaḥ |

nirvāṇa-dhūmākula-rājayaś ca nīlotpalābhāḥ pracakāśire ’bhrāḥ ||

Translation

तेथे आकाशात उंच उसळलेला अग्नी रूक्ष तेजाने जळत होता, जणू किंशुकाच्या लाल फुलांचा मुकुटच त्याच्या शिरी आहे। विझत्या निखाऱ्यांच्या धुराने रेषांकित व दाट झालेले मेघ निळ्या कमळांसारखे चमकू लागले॥

Word by Word

तत्रthere

अम्बरात्from the sky

अग्निःfire

अति-प्रवृद्धःexcessively grown

रूक्ष-प्रभःharsh-bright / with fierce glare

किंशुक-पुष्प-चूडःwith a crest like kiṃśuka flowers

निर्वाण-धूम-आकुल-राजयःwith streaks confused/filled with extinguished-fire smoke

चand

नील-उत्पल-आभाःhaving the hue of blue lotuses

प्रचकाशिरेshone brightly

अभ्राःclouds

Context

The dazzling flames of fire red like kimsuka flowers shot up violently into the sky. The clouds engulfed by the smoke rising from the subsiding fire was shining like the lustre of blue lotuses .

Characters & Entities

agni (fire)

kiṁśuka (Butea monosperma)

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

The verse underscores karmic consequence in the moral universe of the Rāmāyaṇa: destructive forces arise as a response to adharma, and the narrative frames even terrifying spectacle within an ordered ethical cosmos.

What is the narrative situation?

After Hanumān sets Laṅkā ablaze, the conflagration surges upward; smoke and clouds fill the sky, and the epic describes the scene with vivid natural imagery.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Hanumān’s vīrya (heroic power) is implied through the scale of the blaze, reflecting steadfast resolve in service to Rāma’s righteous mission.