After Lakshmana cuts off the nose and ears of Shurpanakha, who was about to attack Sita, she comes before Khara, Dushana and the others with her blood-soaked face and incites them to kill Rama and Lakshmana.
Khara, Dushana, Trishira and the other most fearsome rakshasas, fourteen thousand in all, were followers of Ravana. They lived in Janasthana in the Dandakaranya region, tormenting the sages and doing just as they pleased. When they saw her condition, they flew into a rage.
Khara underestimates Rama’s strength and orders fourteen rakshasas to kill him. Taking up huge tridents, swords, iron clubs and arrows, they attack Rama. The arrows Rama releases pierce through their hearts, come out the other side and bury themselves in the earth. All of them crash to the ground like banana trees cut at the root.
When Khara and Dushana learn that these rakshasas died in an instant, they attack Rama with fourteen thousand rakshasas bearing massive weapons. Khara comes with his twelve chief followers and, roaring ferociously, surrounds Rama. Sensing that a terrible battle is about to take place, the animals and birds flee the forest.
Seeing Khara, Rama stands firm, unafraid, unshaken and unmoving, like Shiva holding the bow called Pinaka. His body is drenched in blood from the blows of the weapons the rakshasas hurl at him.
Then, before the rakshasas can even blink, he unleashes a shower of arrows from his bow. Before they can even marvel at the speed of those arrows, they fall to the ground. Khara’s band of followers dies right before his eyes.
Seeing this, Dushana leaps at Rama in fury. With a sharp arrow, Rama severs his arms, strikes him down and kills him. When Trishira comes forward with Khara’s permission, Rama cuts off his head and kills him.
Seeing Rama’s supremely terrifying valour, Khara is gripped by fear. But he suppresses it within himself, roars ferociously, draws his bow and fires fierce arrows at Rama. Rama’s bow breaks. His armour falls away.
At once, Rama takes up the great bow given to him by Agastya and rains down a continuous stream of arrows. The arrows of the two fill the entire sky, and darkness spreads everywhere. Rama immediately showers more arrows and brings Khara down from his chariot.
Khara picks up a huge sala tree and leaps at Rama. Rama cuts that down too and strikes Khara in the heart with an arrow like the Brahma Danda. From that blow, Khara falls to the ground and dies, like the demon Andhakasura burnt by Rudra.
The sages and royal sages praise Rama as the mighty hero who, in this great battle, slew fourteen thousand rakshasas, including Khara and Dushana, in one and a half muhurtas (that is, one hour and twelve minutes).
Chaganti Prasad, Director, Content Writer, Lipi Inc
(From the Valmiki Ramayana)
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