reaths and
flowers, on the heads of kings and conquerors when they go forth to
battle and return is frequently mentioned by Indian poets.

982 Lakshman.

983 I have abridged this long Canto by omitting some vain repetitions,
commonplace epithets and similes and other unimportant matter. There
are many verses in this Canto which European scholars would rigidly
exclude as unmistakeably the work of later rhapsodists. Even the
reverent Commentator whom I follow ventures to remark once or twice:
_Ayam sloka prak shipta iti bahavah_, "This _sloka_ or verse is in
the opinion of many interpolated."

984 Narak was a demon, son of Bhumi or Earth, who haunted the city
Pragjyotisha.

985 Sambar was a demon of drought.

986 Indra.

987 Devantak (Slayer of Gods) Narantak (Slayer of Men) Atikaya (Huge of
Frame) and Trisiras (Three Headed) were all sons of Ravan.

988 The demon of eclipse who seizes the Sun and Moon.

989 Lakshman.

990 In such cases as this I am not careful to reproduce the numbers of
the poet, which in the text which I follow are 670000000; the Bengal
recension being content with thirty million less.

991 The discus or quoit, a sharp-edged circular missile is the favourite
weapon of Vishnu.

992 To destroy Tripura the triple city in the sky, air and earth, built
by Maya for a celebrated Asur or demon, or as another commentator
explains, to destroy Kandarpa or Love.

993 The Lokapalas are sometimes regarded as deities appointed by Brahma
at the creation of the word to act as guardians of different orders
of beings, but more commonly they are identified with the deities
presiding over the four cardinal and four intermediate points of the
compass, which, according to Manu V. 96, are 1, Indra, guardian of
the East; 2, Agni, of the South-east; 3, Yama, of the South; 4,
Surya, of the South-west; 5, Varuna, of the West; 6, Pavana or Vayu,
of the North-west; 7, Kuvera, of the North; 8, Soma or Chandra, of
the North-east.

994 The chariots of Ravan's present army are said to have been one
hundred and fifty million in number with three hundred million
elephants, and twelve hundred million horses and asses. The footmen
are merely said to have been "unnumbered."

995 It is not very easy to see the advantage of having arrows headed