Hari Om.
Let us begin the seventy fifth sarga of the ayOdhyA kAnDam by offering our prostrations at the lotus feet of SrIrAma and our sathguru.
Mother kaikEyI was joyous to receive her son who returned from kEkaya, her father’s kingdom. Prince bharata, not finding his father in his chamber goes to his mother’s and learns from her about the death of the king as well as the banishment of rAma. The foolish mother, unaware of her son’s purity of heart, tells him that he is set to be the king of ayOdhyA! What follows is a brutal and unsparing take down of his mother by prince bharata for her mindless insistence against the tradition of ikshvAkus and the current crisis her obstinate demands have landed the royal clan in. More than bharata’s regard for tradition his unflinching loyalty and devotion to his elder brother rAma comes out in full view as he brushes aside his mother’s wishes and votes for dharma. He proves the words of daSaratha in [2.12. daSaratha blows hot and cold] where the king tells kaikEyI even if the kingdom were to be given to bharata he won’t accept it as he is established in dharma, a wee bit more even than rAma! Presently prince bharata is ready to renounce everything, bring rAma back to ayOdhyA and anoint him as the king by the preceptors. In one stroke he demolishes the schemes and dreams of his mother by staunchly following dharma and rAma. Onwards…
After unleashing his wrath on kaikEyI deeply grief stricken bharata lost his senses and after a long time gathered himself and rose up. Eyes filled with tears and a voice choked with grief in the presence of the ministers he disapproved of kaikEyI’s schemes and condemned her unequivocally. He said – “Never did I desire kingdom nor did I consult anything related to that with my mother. I was totally unaware of the king’s decision with respect to crowning having been away at in the distant country along with Satrughna. I have absolutely no idea how the banishment of rAma along with sItA and lakshmaNa took place”.
As the great bharata thus pleaded innocence sincerely and in utter grief, mother kausalyA heard his voice and recognized it to be prince bharata’s and said to sumitrA that the farsighted son of cruel kaikEyI bharata is around and she must see him at once. With those words as kausalyA was about to start to see bharata, he along with Satrughna reached the abode of mother kausalyA at the same time. Beholding her and inundated with untold misery and sorrow, both brothers embraced mother kausalyA and lost their senses. The sorrowful mother kausalyA addressed the sobbing brothers and said – “Here you have obtained your desired kingdom, completely unobstructed, secured for you by the cruel kaikEyI in quick time. What merit did the haughty kaikEyI see in sending off my son to the forests dressed in the bark? She should pack me also off to the same forest where my illustrious son is residing. Or else, I can go there myself accompanied by sumitrA and carrying the fire of sacrifice. Or you could yourself take me to the place where my son rAma is observing penance. This vast land now belongs to you along with the wealth, grains, elephants, horses, chariots and all its prosperity which have been secured by her for you”.
As kausalyA unleashed the darts of harsh words grudgingly at the sinless bharata, he felt immense pain, like the wound being needled.
इत्यादिबहुभिर्वाक्यैः क्रूरैः सम्भर्त्सितोऽनघः।
विव्यथे भरतस्तीव्रं व्रणे तुद्येव सूचिना।।2.75.17।।
Prince bharata was devastated to hear these insinuations from kausalyA and was overwhelmed with sorrow and addressed her –
“O noble lady, how come you are upbraiding me who is unaware of what has transpired and guiltless, despite knowing well my deep affection for rAghava (rAma)?
[bharata swears profoundly implying if he was involved in the banishment of rAma, he may incur terrible sins as he describes elaborately and graphically]
Despite being well educated in scriptures, let the intellect of that person never prosper by whose prodding the best of virtuous men, ever truthful rAma went to the forests.
The sins of Servitude of worst sinners, one urinating facing the Sun and one kicking a sleeping cow be incurred by the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
कृता शास्त्रानुगा बुद्धिर्माभूत्तस्य कदाचन।
सत्यसन्ध स्सतां श्रेष्ठो यस्याऽर्योऽनुमते गतः।।2.75.21।।
The sin incurred by
a master due to nonpayment of dues to his servitor
a person who betrays the king that looks after the people as his own children
a king who collects a sixth part of people’s income as tax and doesn’t protect them
a person who retracts on the promises made to ascetics that perform yajna
a fighter who is sent to the battlefield with all the resources of elephants, horses and chariots and doesn’t fulfil his duty of fighting
a rogue who destroys the knowledge of the essence provided carefully by an exalted preceptor
an unfortunate person that cannot behold the crowning of a mighty and resplendent king on the throne
the terrible fellow who partakes porridge, sesame rice and meat without offering to the gods and disrespects the gurus
the one who touches a cow with his feet, abuses elders and betrays his friends
an evil minded person that spills the secrets shared by friends in confidence and betrays them
a person hated by the world for not helping others, being shameless and ungrateful, and having attempted suicide
the one who relishes delicacies by himself despite being in company of his wife, children and servants
the one who doesn’t get a deserving wife and children and dies without performing meritorious deeds
one who dies without seeing his own children from his wife grieving all life
one who kills a king or a woman or a child or an old person and the one who deserts his dependents
one who runs his family by dealing with lac, wine, meat, iron and poison
a warrior who deserts the raging battle and is slain
a beggar dressed in rags who roams the world with a skull bowl in his hand like a madcap
one who is ever lost in women, wine and gambling consumed by lust and anger
be suffered by the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
May dharma never dwell in his heart and may be established in adharma losing all his wealth to undue charity with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
May the suffering of the one who loses all his hard earned wealth through burglary by thieves be due to the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
May the sin incurred by the those who sleep during the either sandhyAs (conjunction times, just before sunrise and just after sunset) be incurred by the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
May the sin incurred by those who set fire to houses, who dwell on the preceptor’s bed and who betray friends be incurred by the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
May the sin incurred by the one who doesn’t worship the gods, ancestors and who doesn’t serve his parents be up on the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
He be expelled from the world at once by the those virtuous ones and engaged in great actions the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
The sin incurred by the one who neglects the service of his mother and instead loiters around aimlessly be incurred by the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
May he suffer in life with large number of children, leading a pauper’s life and cursed by ill health always drowned in difficulties, the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
The sin incurred by the wretch who dashes the charity due to the forlorn who is anticipating and looking up to alms from someone be upon one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
The sin incurred by the unrighteous one who always roams in disguise being afraid of the king, mean and impure be on the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
The sin incurred by one who neglects and doesn’t fulfil the desire of his wife post menstrual periods be incurred by the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
The sin incurred by the one who neglects his wife he wedded with due ceremony and indulges in extra marital affairs with other’s wives and thus foolishly gives up dharma be incurred by the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
The sin of earlier births due to which a brAhmin goes childless in the current birth be incurred by the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
The sin of a senseless man who spoils the worship of a brAhmin and milks a cow with a young calf be incurred by the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
The sin acquired by polluting drinking water is same as the sin of poisoning some one. May such sin be incurred by the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
The sin acquired by possessor of water that doesn’t offer it to a thirsty man be incurred up on the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests.
The sin acquired by one who takes the side of one party among the many who are seeking justice be upon the one with whose prodding rAma went to the forests“.
Thus bharata swore his innocence in the whole matter of banishment of rAma in front of kausalyA and fell on her feet in deep anguish and sorrow and lost his senses. To that prince bharata who swore so sincerely and painfully, mother kausalyA affectionately addressed and said –
“O child, by your painful oaths and sincere swears my sorrow goes manifold and it is choking my very life. Fortunately you have not moved away from dharma and for that you along with lakshmaNa shall attain the exalted worlds”.
Saying so, she drew bharata to her and embraced him and wailed pitiably. The sorrow and sobs there made bharata’s mind unsteady. The night passed in repeated wails and sighs, fallen on the ground in total devastation with intellect dimmed.
Here we conclude the seventy fifth sarga of the ayOdhyA kAnDam of SrImath vAlmiKi rAmAyaNam and humbly offer it at the lotus feet of SrIrAma. Hari: Om!
jAi SrIrAma.
Click on the book for word by word meaning from IITK website
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Next: 2.76. daSaratha merges with the elements
Previous: 2.74. The bharata of perfect priorities!
rAmabhaktisAmrAjyam 
