Aksha Kumāra

Aksha Kumāra was a son of Rāvaṇa. He was one of the leaders sent to stop Hanumān after Hanumān destroyed the Pramadā Vana, Rāvaṇa’s garden. He was a young and shining warrior. He fought Hanumān in the sky and was slain by him.

How he looked

Aksha Kumāra came to meet Hanumān as a young warrior full of light, blazing like the rising sun. His weapons were strung and ready. He rode in a chariot drawn by eight fine horses. His armour gleamed in the sun. He advanced with great fierceness, and the watching devas respected it. Indrajit, the greatest of Rāvaṇa’s warriors, had not yet been sent.

The battle

Aksha Kumāra fought with real skill. He met Hanumān in a battle in the air and sent weapons of great force. He struck Hanumān, and he fought on foot as well. The devas who watched agreed that this young rākshasa was a remarkable fighter.

But Hanumān was the son of Vāyu, and no weapon, however well aimed, could win a clear victory over him. As the fight went on, Aksha Kumāra’s strength gave out, and Hanumān moved to end it. He seized the young prince by the feet, whirled him through the air with great force and dashed him to the ground. Aksha Kumāra was killed.

What followed

Rāvaṇa had sent leader after leader and army after army against Hanumān. Aksha Kumāra, his own dear son, was the last of them. When Aksha Kumāra fell, Rāvaṇa sent Indrajit, his mightiest son, to deal with this vānara. Indrajit then captured Hanumān with the Brahmāstra.

Sources

• Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Sundara Kāṇḍa, Chapter 47