Śrīmad Vālmīki Rāmāyana (English Translation)

Scenting mischief in the mind of Bharata, who was taking a large army with him, Guha orders the ferrymen to guard the boats so as to prevent Bharata’s men from crossing the Gangā, and himself seeks the presence of Bharata in order to know his mind. Being satisfied about his good intention, he entertains Bharata and his men with fruits and roots etc., brought by him and, on his having taken rest aw...

Leaving the capital early next morning, accompanied by the family-priests, artisans, army and the citizens, and covering a long distance, Bharata reaches the bank of the holy Gangā at Śrngaverapura ruled by Guha and, encamping the army, breaks journey in order to do Śrāddha and Tarpana in honour of his deceased father on the bank of the Gangā and also to give rest to his followers.

Sage Vasistha urges Bharata to accept the kingdom bequeathed to him by his father and elder brother. Bharata, however, scornfully declines the offer and takes a solemn pledge to depart for the forest and try his level best to bring his elder brother back to Ayodhyā. At his instance Sumantra gets a chariot ready to take him to the.

The king’s bards, panegyrists and minstrels having commenced eulogizing Bharata in the customary way in the midst of festal music at sunrise the following morning, Bharata stops it, disclaiming sovereignty, and complains to Śatrughna of the ill-turn done to the world by his own mother. In the meantime Sage Vasistha enters the royal court and sends messengers to Bharata urging him to be present in...

The engineers detailed by Bharata’s ministers construct a broad passage from Ayodhyā to the bank of the Gangā and render it easy to tread by erecting pavilions and digging wells here and there on the roadside.

On the fourteenth day the foremost of counsellors entreat Bharata to accept the throne. Turning down their entreaty, Bharata, who is keen to bring Śrī Rāma back to Ayodhyā, urges them to detail expert engineers to construct a road, bridges and causeways etc., to facilitate his journey to the place of Śrī Rāma’s abode.

While Bharata is contemplating to undertake a journey to meet Śrī Rāma, Śatrughna blames Laksmana for failing to restrain his father and forcibly prevent Śrī Rāma’s exile. In the meantime Bharata catches sight of Mantharā standing at the door decked with ornaments and points to her as the root of all mischief. Śatrughna thereupon pounces upon the maidservant standing in the midst of her companions...

Having performed with the help of Śatrughna all the obsequial rites relating to his deceased father on the twelfth day after his death, Bharata gifts to the Brāhmanas abundant gold and jewels as a part of the obsequies. Overwhelmed with grief on reaching the funeral pile in order to pick up the principal bones of the deceased on the thirteenth day, the prince drops to the ground. Rolling on the gr...

Removing his father’s dead body from the vessel full of oil and cremating it with the help of articles befitting an Emperor, and offering libations of water to the spirit of the deceased on the bank of the Sarayū, as enjoined by Vasistha, Bharata returns to Ayodhyā.

Swearing that what had already come to pass in the shape of exile of Śrī Rāma, Sītā and aksmana and the resultant death of the King-Emperor was not to his liking, Bharata moves with Śatrughna to the apartments of his stepmother, Kausalyā, who speaks unkindly to him taunting him with the remark that his mother, Kaikeyī, had rendered good offices to him by securing for him the kingdom of Kosala, sou...

Severely reproaching his mother once more, and making up his mind not only to bring back Śrī Rāma from the forest and crown him king, but also to go into exile for fourteen years in order to redeem his elder brother’s vow; Bharata, who is filled with rage at the thought of the mischief wrought by his mother, cannot contain his grief and falls unconscious on the ground.

Bitterly reproaching Kaikeyī in many ways, and cutting her to the quick by his caustic remarks, Bharata takes a vow before her to bring back Śrī Rāma from the forest, install him on the throne of Ayodhyā and wait upon him as an attendant to offend her.

Entering his father’s apartments and not finding him there, Bharata moves to his mother’s apartments and, having communicated to her the welfare of his maternal grandfather and others on being questioned by her, inquires of her the whereabouts of his father. Kaikeyī then breaks to him the news of his father’s death, attributing it to Śrī Rāma’s exile and holding herself responsible for the latter,...

When Bharata reaches Ayodhyā after crossing many streams and rivers and passing through different territories and finds the city cheerless and wearing a deserted look, he sets about brooding and speculating as to what may be the reason for this and, speaking to the charioteer about it, enters the palace dejected and disconsolate.

While Bharata was narrating to his friends the dream seen by him the previous night, the messengers from Ayodhyā arrive in his presence and, bowing low to Bharata, communicate to him the orders of Sage Vasistha. Having heard of the welfare of all from the mouth of the messengers, the prince takes leave of his maternal grandfather and others and departs for Ayodhyā.

Finding Bharata oppressed and sad, his friends try to beguile him by means of music and narration of stories. But when the prince does not return to his normal mood even then, they inquire of him as to what makes him pensive and Bharata tells them how he saw a bad dream the previous night.

With the concurrence of Mārkandeya and other sages, Vasistha despatches messengers to call back Bharata and Śatrughna from their maternal grandfatherís. They leave forthwith for the capital of Kekaya and quickly enter that city.

Attributing the rise and fall of a kingdom to the presence and disappearance of its ruler, Mārkandeya and other great sages, who attended the kingís court the following day, urge Vasistha to install any of the princes on the throne immediately.

Resting the head of the lifeless monarch in her own lap and severely reproaching Kaikeyī, Kausalyā grievously mourns for Śrī Rāma and other exiles. Holding back Kausalyā - who was lamenting with her arms placed round her deceased husbandís bosomó and consigning the Emperor’s dead body to a trough filled with oil, the ministers and other functionaries return each to his own abode in the evening.

When the Emperor did not wake up even though roused by means of panegyrics sung by bards, accompanied by musical instruments played upon for the same purpose, the ladies of the gynaeceum conclude by other means that the king is dead; and soon after commences the loud wail of Kausalyā, Sumitrā and other queens.

Daśaratha continues to tell Kausalyā how, having sought the presence of the aged parents of the deceased, he apprised them of the sad incident and escorted them to the river bank, where their son lay dead; how, clasping the boy to their bosom, they both piteously wailed and offered libations of water to his spirit for its benefit; how, invested with an ethereal body, the spirit ascended to heaven...

Waking from sleep after a while and recalling his sinful deed, which spelt death to him, Daśaratha proceeds to tell Kausalyā how, while he was Prince Regent of Ayodhyā, he went out a-hunting in the forest one day and heard during the last watch of the night the sound of a hermit boy filling his pitcher with water by submerging into Sarayū river. Mistaking the gurgling sound for the trumpeting of a...

When reproached in harsh words by Kausalyā, though already feeling disconsolate through separation from his sons and daughter-in-law, Daśaratha falls into a swoon recalling his past sin in the form of killing a hermit boy, which was responsible for his present misfortune. On waking from his swoon he tries with folded hands to conciliate Kausalyā and on the latter reciprocating his sentiments, the...

Apprehending danger to the king from his inability to bear the grief caused by separation from Śrī Rāma, Kausalyā, though foremost among devoted wives, twits Daśaratha.

Sumantra does not succeed in soothing the agony of Kausalyā, who tossed about on the floor due to excess of grief over her separation from Śrī Rāma, even though he consoles her by telling her that Śrī Rāma, being resolute and high-minded, was living in the forest free from agony.