The Narmada River, site of Ravana’s battle, enters the narrative as the geographical setting for a reversal in Ravana’s campaign of conquest: on its banks, Karttavirya Arjuna defeats and imprisons him. The river is not described in detail; its significance here lies in anchoring the encounter that briefly halts Ravana’s advance.

Setting and Narrative Context

The account places the battle on the banks of the Narmada, near Máhishmati, whose king is Karttavirya Arjuna. The episode appears in a retrospective survey of Ravana’s exploits, among successive confrontations with rulers and supernatural powers. The river provides a specific setting for this episode in that wider sequence, rather than becoming the focus of a separate description.

The Battle on the Riverbank

Ravana attacks Karttavirya Arjuna, the powerful king of Máhishmati, at the Narmada. The outcome reverses the expected direction of the invasion: Ravana is defeated, captured, and held in imprisonment. Pulastya intervenes on his behalf, and Ravana is released. The passage thus associates the river with a rare interruption of Ravana’s otherwise triumphant progress, while making clear that his release follows another figure’s intercession.

Place in the Larger Account

After his release, Ravana visits Kishkindha and forms an alliance with Bali. The narrative then moves on to his other campaigns, so the Narmada episode functions as a brief but consequential stage in the account of his travels: defeat and captivity interrupt his advance, before he resumes his journey. The book’s index also lists the Narmada at three page references, while the account supplied here identifies the riverbank battle as its explicit narrative role.