Hear now the fourth chapter of the glorious Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, in the Sundara Kāṇḍa. Having conquered the splendid city of Laṅkā and its shape-shifting guardian through his valor, the illustrious Hanumān, best among the monkeys, pressed onward. With extraordinary courage, this great-souled monkey-elephant entered the city of Laṅkā at night, leaping over its formidable wall rather than passing through the gate. Once inside, Hanumān, acting for the welfare of the monkey-king, boldly placed his left foot upon the heads of his enemies, marking his triumph. Approaching the beautiful city, he was greeted by the resounding blare of laughter and the loud music of instruments echoing through the night. The splendid city dazzled his eyes, its mansions adorned with lattices resembling thunderbolts and decorated with diamond networks, rising like clouds in the sky. At that moment, Laṅkā blazed with the radiant houses of the hosts of demons, white as clouds and adorned with lotus and svastika designs. The city’s ever-increasing houses, beautifully decorated on all sides with varied garlands and ornaments, revealed themselves to Hanumān as he wandered for the sake of the monkey-king. Moving about in service of Rāghava, Hanumān rejoiced as he passed from mansion to mansion, marveling at their forms and shapes. He heard charming songs embellished with the threefold notes, and the jingling of girdles and the sound of anklets worn by women struck by love, reminiscent of celestial nymphs in heaven. In the mansions of the great-souled, he heard footsteps, clapping of hands, and whistling here and there. Within the houses of the demons, Hanumān heard the chanting of mantras by those devoted to recitation, and saw night-wanderers absorbed in their own study. He witnessed a great host of demons, roaring and praising Rāvaṇa, standing and filling the royal road. In the central division, he observed many spies of the demon, consecrated, with matted hair or shaven heads, clothed in cowhide garments. He saw those armed with darbha grass in their fists, those wielding fire-pits as weapons, others holding clubs, maces, and staffs. Among them were one-eyed, many-colored, pot-bellied, large-breasted, fierce, crooked-mouthed, monstrous, and dwarfish beings. Hanumān saw archers, sword-bearers, those armed with pestles and iron clubs, and others with great iron bars, shining in varied armor. He noticed those who were neither too stout nor too thin, neither too tall nor too short, neither too fair nor too dark, neither hunchbacked nor dwarfish. He saw the misshapen, the many-formed, the handsome, the splendid, those bearing banners and flags, and those with various weapons. Warriors bearing spears, trees, swords, thunderbolts, slings, and nooses in their hands passed before him. Many were adorned with garlands, unguents, splendid ornaments, and dressed in various attires, each moving about as they pleased. He saw those bearing sharp spears and mighty thunderbolts—a hundred thousand vigilant rakshasas, unwearied in their duty. Before the inner apartments, Hanumān beheld the house designated by the lord of the rakshasas. This renowned residence of the king of the rakshasas, established atop a mountain and encircled by moats adorned with lotus garlands, stood before him. The great monkey saw it completely surrounded by ramparts, divine in appearance, resounding with celestial music, resembling the realm of the gods. It echoed with the neighing of horses and the clamor of ornaments, filled with splendid chariots, vehicles, aerial cars, noble horses, and elephants. Four-tusked elephants, like masses of white clouds, adorned and stationed at beautiful gates, mingled with intoxicated beasts and birds. Guarded by thousands of mighty rakshasas and protected by the lord of the rakshasas himself, Hanumān entered that house. He entered Rāvaṇa’s inner palace, encircled by golden and jeweled railings, adorned with precious pearls and gems, fragrant with the finest aloe and sandalwood. Here ends the fifth sarga of the Sundara Kāṇḍa in the glorious Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa. Then, Hanumān, wise and attentive, saw the moon, radiant in the sky, spreading its silvery light, rising and setting again and again like a maddened bull wandering in a pasture. He saw the cool-rayed moon, destroying the sins of the world, stirring the great ocean, and illuminating all beings as it approached. Just as Lakshmi shines on earth atop Mandara, or in the ocean at dusk, or among lotuses in the water, so did she shine beautifully with the moon in the sky. As a swan shines in a silver cage, as a lion in a Mandara cave, as a hero atop a proud elephant, so too did the moon shine in the sky. The blessed moon, spotless and radiant, free from dew, frost, and the shadow of great planets, shone forth, its brilliance unblemished. Just as a lion shines upon reaching a rocky plateau, or an elephant in a great forest, or a king upon attaining his kingdom, so did the moon shine forth in the sky. The blessed twilight, radiant as heaven, dispelled darkness at the moon’s rising, drove away the growing rakshasas and flesh-eaters, and soothed the mind delighted by Rāma. The strains of stringed instruments, pleasing to the ear, resounded; noble women, well-conducted, slept with their husbands; and likewise, the night-wanderers of wondrous and fierce conduct set out to revel. Hanumān, the wise monkey, beheld clans that were intoxicated and disordered, crowded with chariots, horses, and splendid seats, and filled with the glory of heroes.