August 18, 2026
pāpā mlecchā dhanāḍhyāś ca nānādeśyāḥ susaṁhatāḥ
bahavo labdharandhrāśca sāmādernā ‘‘spadaṁ dviṣaḥ (109/4)
VASIṢṬHA continued:
In the meantime, all the ministers had assembled around the king. They counselled him thus: “Lord, we have duly considered the situation concerning our enemy. We have come to the conclusion that the three peaceful courses of dealing with the enemy are inappropriate in this case and that only the fourth – punishment or violence – is adequate. In fact, we have not shown friendship or alliance with these enemies at any time before; hence it is of no use now. Enemies who come under the following classification are not amenable to peaceful negotiation: sinners, barbarians, foreigners, they who are firmly united among themselves, as well as they who know our weakness very well. Therefore let there be no delay. Order general mobilisation and preparation for a full-scale war.”
The king issued the necessary orders and sent the ministers to the battlefield saying that he would soon join them after his customary worship of the sacred fire. He then had his bath and approached the sacred fire for worship. He prayed: “Lord, I have effortlessly overcome all my enemies so far and ruled this far-flung empire exercising my sovereignty over many islands and continents. I held sway over many peoples, including demons. But now perhaps I have grown old. Therefore, these my enemies have thought it fit to invade my territory. Lord, just as till now I have made different oblations to this sacred fire, today I shall offer my own head as oblation. I pray that out of this fire, four powerful beings may emerge like the four arms of lord Nārāyaṇa.”
So saying, the king cut off his head with the greatest ease and the next instant his body fell into the fire along with the severed head. Out of that fire the king re-emerged as four radiant warriors of extraordinary radiance and vitality and equipped with the very best of weapons of every description. It was obvious that they could not be overcome by any warlike device that the enemy might adopt, whether it be missiles or mantras, drugs, etc.
The enemy forces were advancing at the same time. There was a terrible battle. The sky was covered with smoke and also with missiles. Swords gleamed, revolvers emitted fire continuously; it was terrible to look at. There was a river of blood in which even elephants were borne down. Here and there two missiles collided in the sky which was illumined by the light emitted by them. In the mind and the heart of every warrior there was only one thought, “I should kill the enemy or be killed by him”. The war was also bringing out the good and noble qualities in the people which were dormant till then. On the other hand, there was also extremely cruel behaviour. Here and there warriors killed even refugees and looted whatever they could.
The people who were not directly involved in the war, the non-combatants, fled the place. The battlefield was filled with warriors to whom the distinction between life and death had vanished.