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main there "afflicted by Time",^[1] and subject to the sway of Varuna. Like the Norse giants, they will be let loose to take part in the "Last Battle". An "Asura fire" burns constantly in Patala, fed by water; it is "bound and confined", but cannot be extinguished; when the end of all comes, it will burst forth and burn up the three worlds.^[2] In Teutonic mythology the Universe is similarly doomed to be consumed by fire at Ragnarok, "the Dusk of the Gods".

The abodes of these giants and demons are exceedingly beautiful; they are agleam with gold and precious stones; seats and beds are provided in the mansions, and there are also recreation grounds, and forests and mountains resembling clouds. Indeed, the Daityas and Danavas live pretty much in the same manner as the gods, for "the gods and Danavas are brothers, although ever hostile to one another".^[3] The Danava women are of gigantic stature, and wear jewels as large as mountain boulders; when terrified by the attacks of the gods, they "bewail like unto cranes in Autumn". One of the Daitya tribes reside in the moving city named Hiranyapura, which they constructed for their protection; sometimes it sinks below the sea, or under the earth; at other times it soars across the heavens like the sun. Indra, as we have seen, has a similar aerial city.

In the Underworld dwell also the Nagas, the demoniac Cobras; they are of human form to the waist, the rest of their bodies being like those of serpents. Their king is Shesha, who is also named Vasuki and Karkotáka; he is sometimes represented with a thousand heads, and resembles Typhon, who fought with Zeus. In the Ramayana he is Ravana, the Demon of Ceylon. The