Text 21
viplāvitaṁ sva-śibiraṁ
pratisrotaḥ-sarij-jalaiḥ
nāmṛṣyat tasya tad vīryaṁ
vīramānī daśānanaḥ
viplāvitam — having been inundated; sva-śibiram — his own camp; pratisrotaḥ — which was flowing in the opposite direction; sarit-jalaiḥ — by the water of the river; na — not; amṛṣyat — could tolerate; tasya — of Kārtavīryārjuna; tat vīryam — that influence; vīramānī — considering himself very heroic; daśa-ānanaḥ — the ten-headed Rāvaṇa.
Because Kārtavīryārjuna made the water flow in the opposite direction, the camp of Rāvaṇa, which was set up on the bank of the Narmadā near the city of Māhiṣmatī, was inundated. This was unbearable to the ten-headed Rāvaṇa, who considered himself a great hero and could not tolerate Kārtavīryārjuna’s power.
Rāvaṇa was out touring to gain victory over all other countries (dig-vijaya), and he had camped on the bank of the Narmadā River near the city of Māhiṣmatī.