The Bajang Child Swinging the Moon (136)

"Your Majesty, at the mouth of the Gangga River there lies a great giant that is bigger than a mountain. He deliberately blocks the Gangga River, until the water turns back, up to this Nusa Manik hill,” the giant Suka gives the report while bowing in respect.

"Who is he, that bastard and rude giant?" Rahwana snaps.

"He's not really a giant, Your Majesty. He is Prabu Arjunasasrabahu, the ruler of Maespati, the king of kings, whose power is incomparable. Kings submit at his feet. Now he is doing tiwikrama (transformation) making himself a giant, so he can block the Gangga River,” the giant Sarana testifies.

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The Bajang Child Swinging the Moon (135)

“Hah, bastard, is there a king whose greatness exceeds mine? It is impossible for this to happen. I will prove it. I am the king of kings above him. But what exactly is the aim of this crazy giant to stop the Gangga River so that it disturbs me and my troops here in Nusa Manik?” Rahwana begins to lose his patience.

“The king of Maespati is blocking the Gangga River to make a lake. He wants his empress and hundreds of concubines to bathe and have fun in the estuary of the Gangga River," says the giant Suka.

“Bastard! That mad giant has an empress and hundreds of concubines?” Rahwana's attention shifts upon hearing the giant Suka’s report about the women that the king of Maespati has.

“All the concubines are beautiful, Your Majesty. Moreover, the empress, she is a beautiful and matchless princess," says the giant Sarana.

"Who is his empress that you praise her as high as the sky, as if there is no woman more beautiful than her?" Rahwana asks more curiously.

And the warlords say Dewi Citrawati is beautiful like an angel because she is the incarnation of Dewi Sri.

"I discovered that the empress is named Dewi Citrawati, the princess of the kingdom of Magada. And the warlords say Dewi Citrawati is beautiful like an angel because she is the incarnation of Dewi Sri,” continues the giant Suka.

"What? The empress is the incarnation of Dewi Sri? Isn't she the one I've been looking for?" Rahwana murmurs to himself. His face is beaming. Who would have thought that the incarnation of Dewi Sri he was looking for would suddenly be in front of his eyes. He feels the gods are afraid and now grant his request.

"I will destroy that mad giant and take his wife right now," says Rahwana in a blaring voice.

"Your Majesty, be patient. Be careful, Prabu Arjunasasrabahu is not an ordinary king. He is the incarnation of Batara Wisnu in this world. Therefore, he has the right to have the empress of Dewi Citrawati, the incarnation of Dewi Sri," the giant Sarana reminds him.

“Shut up, Sarana. I don't care who he is. Whether he is the incarnation of Batara Wisnu or the incarnation of a thousand gods, I'm not afraid to face him. Look, I will bring him to his knees before me. Have you forgotten who I am?” Rahwana snaps.

"I'm just reminding you, Your Majesty. Moreover, I hear that the kingdom of Maespati has a mahapatih named Sumantri who has magical powers that are equal to his own king. Prabu Arjunasasrabahu hands over all authority to him, because the mahapatih with the title Patih Suwondo is enough to conquer all his opponents," the giant Suka says.

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The Bajang Child Swinging the Moon (134)

"Suka, enough of your words. With the king himself I'm not afraid, let alone with the patih. I don't want to hear anything more from you two. Right now, I want to send the Alengka troops to the mouth of the Gangga River, to hit the sleeping giant with all his troops. And I will take princess Dewi Citrawati, the incarnation of Dewi Sri, to Alengka," says Rahwana.

Patih Prahasta, Rahwana's respected uncle in Alengka, tries to prevent his nephew's decision. He warns that Rahwana's fight will be in vain because the opponent he will face is the incarnation of Batara Wisnu. But as usual, nothing can stop Rahwana from contravening his wishes and decisions. This time, he does not even want to listen to his uncle's advice. "Uncle, don't look down on me. You will see for yourself, the king of Maespati, the incarnation of Wisnu, will die in my hands," says the king of Alengka.

With the elephant he wants to boast that no matter how deep the lake that Prabu Arjunasasrabahu makes, he can still wade through it.

On that day, Rahwana orders his troops to prepare themselves. The water has risen on the hill of Nusa Manik. If they linger there, the water will drown them. Therefore, the soldiers of Alengka cut down the trees and make thousands of rafts. Later they row the rafts, heading to the mouth of the Gangga River. Rahwana himself goes by riding Gajahyaksa, the giant elephant, his famous mount, to show his majesty and greatness. The elephant is so strong, big and brave that it will not sink in the water of the Gangga River. With the elephant he wants to boast that no matter how deep the lake that Prabu Arjunasasrabahu makes, he can still wade through it. He orders the giants who can fly to get ahead of him.

Some of his troops are ordered to take a road through the mountain range around the mouth of the Gangga River. Behind them, the Alengka troops take the lowland route by riding horses. As a result, Rahwana departs in his splendor, accompanied by all the main warlords of Alengka, all of whom are giants, Dumreksa, Kampana, Wirupaksa, Suphawara, Gathodara, Prajangga, Pragangsa, Kalamarica, Brajamusti and Puthadaksi. All of them ride elephants behind their lord Gajahyaksa. Meanwhile, thousands of giant soldiers parade on their rafts. They row against the currents of the Gangga River, while shouting battle cries, even though they have completely no idea what the weakness is of the enemy they have to fight.

The cheers of Rahwana's warriors resonate in the mountains near the mouth of the Gangga River. Their battle cry is so great that the trees are frightened and fall. It rumbles in the sky, where giants flash like flying swords and arrows. The water of the Bengawan Gangga lake separates, as giant rafts pass over it with great arrogance. And the water forms a cliff when Rahwana’s giant elephant steps bravely. The jumping fish become flashes of fright in the weakening sunlight. Some of the giants remain on their rafts, floating on the lake. Meanwhile, without being ordered, some of the other giants descend to look for dry land. And some of them climb up the valleys at the mouth of the Gangga River. They continue to shout their war cries and feel that the death of their opponent is at hand, even though they still don't know why they have to kill him.

(This article was translated by Hyginus Hardoyo)