Hari Om.
Let us begin the eighty seventh sarga of the ayOdhyA kAnDam by offering our prostrations at the lotus feet of SrIrAma and our sathguru.
Unable to sleep through the night, bharata was troubled no end by the thoughts of rAma’s exile. His spirits sank as he sought guha to share his misery with him and learn more about rAma’s stay in the SRngabErapura. The tribal king guha offered solace to bharata and then recalled the stay of the trio on the banks of the river gangA. He recalled how lakshmaNa refused to sleep through the night and spent it in vigil along with him, lamenting and guessing the happenings in ayOdhyA post rAma’s exit. The next morning, the brothers wore matted locks and proceeded into the forest along with sItA. As guha recalled this episode to bharata, the prince was aghast at what rAma, sItA and lakshmaNa had to go through. Onwards…
Having heard the unpleasant narration of guha, bharata was upset and his thoughts went to the place where rAma dwelled during his stay there. The elegant, mighty, energetic, lion-like, youthful bharata of pleasant appearance fell down senseless tormented by the saddening episode. His alter-ego Satrughna who was by his side, held him and he too lost his senses in grief. Watching them the mothers who were weak and desolate, yet to recover from the devastating loss of their husband rushed towards them. Sobbing, the mothers approached them and mother kausalyA took bharata to her arms in an outpour of motherly love and enquired if there was any affliction troubling him! She told him that the entire royal family depended on him for its survival and that in the absence of rAma, lakshmaNa and her husband she was alive only because of bharata. She shuddered and wondered if he came to know of any unpleasant news regarding rAma or lakshmaNa because of which he is so devastated. The prince was sobbing inconsolably, still assured kausalyA that there was no such bad news and then enquired of guha, where rAma, sItA and lakshmaNa stayed that night and what food did rAma partake.
The tribal king guha delighted in the memory of the hospitality he could offer to rAma and said – “I came here fully equipped with fruits and a variety of other edibles. rAma acknowledged his hospitality and gesture but true to his dharma as a kshatriya which enjoins that they should always offer and never receive anything from others, he refused to take anything. He merely drank water that lakshmaNa brought from the river gangA. The remaining water was taken by lakshmaNa, They three did their evening prayers.
After that lakshmaNa fetched darbha grass himself and made a bed for sItA and rAma. Having washed their feet, saumitri (lakshmaNa) moved away while sItA and rAma rested on that bed of grass under this ingudi tree that night.
That night both lakshmaNa and me along with my kinsmen wielded bows in our hands with quivers full of arrows, wore the protective coverings on the fingers and in utmost alertness stood in vigil guarding the peerless guest rAma who was verily like indra himself”.
Here we conclude the eighty seventh sarga of the ayOdhyA kAnDam of SrImath vAlmiKi rAmAyaNam and humbly offer it at the lotus feet of SrIrAma. Hari: Om!
jAi SrIrAma.
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Next: 2.88. bharata pines painfully for rAma
Previous: 2.86. guha recalls lakshmaNa’s laments
rAmabhaktisAmrAjyam 
