स राजकुलमासाद्य मेघसङ्घोपमैः शुभैः।
प्रासादशृङ्गैर्विविधैः कैलासशिखरोपमैः॥
आवारयद्भिर्गगनं विमानैरिव पाण्डुरैः।
वर्धमानगृहेश्चापि रत्नजालपरिष्कृतैः॥
तत्पृथिव्यां गृहवरं महेन्द्रभवनोपमम्।
राजपुत्रः पितुर्वेश्म प्रविवेश श्रिया ज्वलन्॥
sa rāja-kulam āsādya megha-saṅghopamaiḥ śubhaiḥ
prāsāda-śṛṅgair vividhaiḥ kailāsa-śikharopamaiḥ
āvārayadbhir gaganaṁ vimānair iva pāṇḍuraiḥ
vardhamāna-gṛhaiś cāpi ratna-jāla-pariṣkṛtaiḥ
tat pṛthivyāṁ gṛha-varaṁ mahendra-bhavanopamam
rāja-putraḥ pitur veśma praviveśa śriyā jvalan
saḥ = the; rāja-kulam = the king’s residence 2; āsādya = reached; megha-saṅgha-upamaiḥ = and resembled a thicket of clouds; śubhaiḥ = were auspicious; prāsāda-śṛṅgaiḥ = palatial peaks; vividhaiḥ = its many; kailāsa-śikhara-upamaiḥ = they appeared to be peaks of Kailāsa; āvārayadbhiḥ = covering; gaganam = the sky; vimānaiḥ = airships; iva = and were like; pāṇḍuraiḥ = pale; vardhamāna-gṛhaiḥ ca api = with houses adjoining vardhamāna buildings; ratna-jāla-pariṣkṛtaiḥ = covered with jewelled lattices; tat = it; pṛthivyām = on earth; gṛha-varam = was the best and unrivalled residence; mahā-indra-bhavana-upamam = equal to the great Indra’s residence; rāja-putraḥ = king’s son; pituḥ = His father’s; veśma = apartment; praviveśa = Rāma then entered; śriyā = with beauty; jvalan = radiant.
Radiant with beauty, the king’s son reached the king’s residence. Its many palatial peaks were auspicious and resembled a thicket of clouds. They appeared to be peaks of Kailasa and were like airships covering the sky. With houses adjoining vardhamāna buildings covered with pale jewelled lattices, it was the best and unrivalled residence on earth, equal to the great Indra’s residence. Rāma then entered His father’s apartment.
1 Viśva-kośa: viḥ pakṣi-paramātmanoḥ.
GLOSS. According to Chapter 206 of the Matsya Purāṇa that deals with the subject of vāstu—dakṣiṇa-dvāra-hīnaṁ tu vardhamānam udāhṛtam: “[A building] devoid of a door in the south is called vardhamāna building.”
GLOSS. Vividhaiḥ indicates that there were many birds on the peaks [of the king’s residence].1