एवं स विलपंस्तस्मिन्वने दशरथात्मजः।
ददर्श महतीं पुण्यां पर्णशालां मनोरमाम्॥
सालतालाश्वकर्णानां पर्णैर्बहुभिरावृताम्।
विशालां मृदुभिस्तीर्णां कुशैर्वेदिमिवाध्वरे॥
शक्रायुधनिकाशैश्च कार्मुकैर्भारसाधनैः।
रुक्मपृष्ठैर्महासारैः शोभितां शत्रुबाधकैः॥
अर्करश्मिप्रतीकाशैर्घोरैस्तूणीगतैः शरैः।
शोभितां दीप्तवदनैस्सर्पैर्भोगवतीमिव॥
महारजतवासोभ्यामसिभ्यां च विराजिताम्।
रुक्मबिन्दुविचित्राभ्यां चर्मभ्यां चापि शोभिताम्॥
गोधाङ्गुलित्रैरासक्तैश्चित्रैः काञ्चनभूषितैः।
अरिसङ्घैरनाधृष्यां मृगैः सिंहगुहामिव॥
evaṁ sa vilapaṁs tasmin vane daśarathātmajaḥ
dadarśa mahatīṁ puṇyāṁ parṇa-śālāṁ mano-ramām
sāla-tālāśva-karṇānāṁ parṇair bahubhir āvṛtām
viśālāṁ mṛdubhis tīrṇāṁ kuśair vedim ivādhvare
śakrāyudha-nikāśaiś ca kārmukair bhāra-sādhanaiḥ
rukma-pṛṣṭhair mahā-sāraiḥ śobhitāṁ śatru-bādhakaiḥ
arka-raśmi-pratīkāśair ghorais tūṇī-gataiḥ śaraiḥ
śobhitāṁ dīpta-vadanaiḥ sarpair bhogavatīm iva
mahā-rajata-vāsobhyām asibhyāṁ ca virājitām
rukma-bindu-vicitrābhyāṁ carmabhyāṁ cāpi śobhitām
godhāṅgulitrair āsaktaiś citraiḥ kāñcana-bhūṣitaiḥ
ari-saṅghair anādhṛṣyāṁ mṛgaiḥ siṁha-guhām iva
evam = thus; saḥ = Bharata; vilapan = while lamenting; tasmin = in that; vane = forest; daśaratha-ātmajaḥ = Daśaratha’s son; dadarśa = saw; mahatīm = a large; puṇyām = auspicious; parṇa-śālām = leaf-cottage; manaḥ-ramām = and charming; sāla-tālāśva-karṇānām = of sāla, śrī-tāla and sarja trees; parṇaiḥ = leaves; bahubhiḥ = with several; āvṛtām = it was covered; viśālām = a spacious; mṛdubhiḥ = with soft; tīrṇām = strewn; kuśaiḥ = kuśa grass; vedim = sacrificial altar; iva = like; adhvare śakra-āyudha-nikāśaiḥ = which resembled Indra’s thunderbolt; ca = and; kārmukaiḥ = with bows; bhāra-sādhanaiḥ = which had heavy components; rukma-pṛṣṭhaiḥ = whose rear portions were gold-plated; mahā-sāraiḥ = which were very firm 2; śobhitām = it shone; śatru-bādhakaiḥ = which [were useful to] oppress enemies; arka-raśmi-pratīkāśaiḥ = and which shone like the rays of the sun; ghoraiḥ = with dreadful; tūṇī-gataiḥ = which were stored in quivers; śaraiḥ = arrows; śobhitām = it was decorated; dīpta-vadanaiḥ = which were stored in quivers; sarpaiḥ = snakes; bhogavatīm = in Bhogavatī, the city of the Nāgas; iva = which were like; mahā-rajata-vāsobhyām = on golden scabbards; asibhyām = with a pair of swords; ca = and; virājitām = it blazed; rukma-bindu-vicitrābhyām = multicolored, with beautifying golden spots; carmabhyām = a pair of shields 3; ca api = as well as; śobhitām = splendorous; godhā-aṅgulitraiḥ = armguards and fingerguards; āsaktaiḥ = placed [on the wall]; citraiḥ = various kinds of; kāñcana-bhūṣitaiḥ = decorated with gold; ari-saṅghaiḥ = to hordes of enemies; anādhṛṣyām = it was unassailable; mṛgaiḥ = to deer; siṁha-guhām = a lion’s cave [is unassailable]; iva = like.
While lamenting thus, Daśaratha’s son Bharata saw a large, auspicious and charming leaf-cottage in that forest. It was covered with several leaves of sāla, śrī-tāla and sarja trees like a spacious sacrificial altar strewn with soft kuśa grass. It shone with bows whose rear portions were gold-plated, which resembled Indra’s thunderbolt, which had heavy components, which were very firm and which [were useful to] oppress enemies. It was decorated with dreadful arrows, which had blazing tips, which shone like the rays of the sun, which were stored in quivers and which were like snakes in Bhogavatī, the city of the Nāgas. It blazed with a pair of swords on golden scabbards, a pair of multicolored shields splendorous with beautifying golden spots as well as various kinds of armguards and fingerguards decorated with gold hanging [on the wall]. It was unassailable to hordes of enemies like a lion’s cave [is unassailable] to deer.
Kārmukaiḥ (“with bows”) is in the plural.1 This indicates that there were other bows for practice. Bhāra-sādhanaiḥ also indicates that those bows were instruments for very serious battles.2 Bhāra is also a standard unit of weight—one bhāra is a hundred palas according to Dhanurveda’s Īśāna Saṁhitā: bhāraṁ pala-śataṁ viduḥ. tena bhāreṇa cāpānāṁ pramāṇam upalabhyate.