Hari Om.
Let us begin the ninty first sarga of the ayOdhyA kAnDam by offering our prostrations at the lotus feet of SrIrAma and our sathguru.
Sage bharadwAja saw sage vasisTha in his hermitage and immediately sprung up from his seat and welcomed him with due protocol. Then he welcomed bharata having recognized him and inquired the welfare of everything in ayOdhyA except about king daSaratha! bharata wanted to know if the sage knew the way to rAma. Sage bharadwAja then pressed bharata a bit more and openly wondered if bharata intended to cause rAma harm and make the throne belong to him uncontested for ever. The prince was deeply hurt to receive this insinuation from the sage and expressed the same. He then articulated the esteem with which he held rAma and that the journey to rAma was to actually bring him back to ayOdhyA and install him as the king! The sage was much pleased and told bharata that he thought as much but asked as he wanted to confirm the same. He praised prince bharata’s resolve and his commitment to the traditions of the royal clan. He foretold that bharata will go down in the history for this gesture. The sage then asked bharata to stay back that evening in the hermitage and proceed the next day and that he would help him with directions. Onwards…
As bharata decided to stay there in the hermitage for the evening, sage bharadwAja extended a hearty invitation to him and his army. He fought shy a bit and said he has already been felicitated duly by him through the ceremonial welcome. The sage bharadwAja smiled and said that bharata is a contented person without needs of ostentation but that he would like to feed his entire army and entourage. And then the sage enquired why the prince left the army at a great distance? The sensible prince replied that the large army that is following him has camped at a distance as they always avoid camping and movement through the sacred places occupied by ascetics lest they cause damage to the surroundings, sanctity and tranquility there. Hence out of fear of such possible desecration the army was left behind. The sage was pleased at the humility of the prince and ordered that the army be brought there at once. The prince complied with the order of the sage and asked the army to come near the hermitage of sage bharadwAja.
The supreme sage bharadwAja who had everything in his control, entered the altar that housed the sacred fire, sipped water as Achamanam and invoked the deity viSwakarma and tvasTA, guardian deities led by indra, rivers flowing east, west and in the higher worlds in order to provide hospitality to bharata and his large entourage. He willed that let intoxicating wine, toddy, sweet sugar cane juice and thirst quenching water flow for the guests to partake. He then invoked the demigods (gandharvas) viSwavasu, haha, huhu and all the various apsarAs (nymphs) to provide entertainment to the guests through heavenly music and graceful dance. He invoked the apsarAs, ghRtAchI, viSvAchI, miSrakESI, alambusA, nAgadanta, hEma, himA and the host of maidens attending the gods indra and brahma along with the musician tumburu together with all their musical instruments. He invoked the lord kubEra to create a mesmerizing garden like his own. He invoked and prayed to the moon god to furnish in abundance the four varieties of edibles, solid, soft, liquid and semi liquid that can be eaten, drunk, licked and slurped. He also asked for variety of trees fully bloomed, garlands of flowers and meat to be furnished. As the amazing sage, faced east, contemplated deeply and said all these invocations in full conformity with vEdic scriptures, the invoked deities appeared one by one!
As they appeared, a gentle and cool mountainous breeze began to blow, comforting the body from sweat, divine music played all around, flowers showered down, the auspicious sounds of the trumpet filled the earth and the sky, apsarAs danced, gandharvas sang. As the auspicious sounds subsided, bharatas army beheld the magical creations of viSwakarma. The area under five yOjanas was leveled, lawns appeared on those. There on those sprawling lawns sprang up a variety of trees including jackfruit, mango, bilva and wood apple. Various trees from the northern region of the forests in the kuru kingdom sprang up along with a sacred river. Stables for the elephants and horses emerged along with well laid paths and arches for the mansions and palaces. And there sprang up a tastefully decorated royal palace with fragrance permeating everywhere. The palace resembling the white clouds, was spacious, sported quadrangles, furnished with thrones and couches. Variety of tasty foods and drinks were arranged there in elegant vessels. The couches and thrones were covered with elegant spreads.
The mighty bharata entered the majestic mansion upon the prodding of sage bharadwAja and his ministers and preceptors followed him. They were all delighted to see the magical uprising of the magnificent palace. There in that palace, in the court hall was a high throne decorated with an umbrella on it, meant for bharata to grace and conduct proceedings like a king. The prince bharata paid his respects to that throne as it was meant for rAma and himself carried a fan made of yak tail and took a lower seat!
आसनं पूजयामास रामायाभिप्रणम्य च।
वालव्यजनमादाय न्यषीदत्सचिवासने।।2.91.39।।
Everyone in the court took their seats as per the hierarchy. Delicious delicacies flowed there like rivers for bharata to partake. On the banks of the rivers that flowed there by the command of sage bharadwAja, mansions sprang up to accommodate the accompanying entourage. Thousands of apsaras oozing absolute beauty, decked with best of ornaments, intoxicating men with their looks, capable of seducing any man appeared by the command of brahma and kubEra. The damsells alambusA, miSrakESI, puNDarIkA and vAmanA danced for bharata by the command of bharadwAja. The floral glory of chaitraratha gardens of kubEra was matched or even bettered by the command of bharadwAja at the prayAga.
Then the various trees there took form of men, the plants and creepers took form of women, bonsais took form of dwarfs and attended to the needs of the warriors of the army. Each warrior was made to feel comfortable with seven or eight women attending on him. They offered unlimited drinks and delicacies, massaged their bodies and showered hospitality. Some attendant attended the camels, elephants, horses and donkeys as well and offered them comfort and food.
The army was so pampered with body massages, bathes, smears of sandal paste, food, drinks and delicacies offered by beautiful women that they ate and drank to the brim and were intoxicated deeply so much so that neither the horse riders recognized their horses nor did the mahouts recognize their elephants! They were surrounded by the apsaras and exclaimed that they neither wanted to return to ayOdhyA nor go to the danDaka forests. They wished both rAma and bharata happiness!! Drunk in the outstanding hospitality of the sage bharadwAja, the soldiers blabbered as they did not taking notice of their leaders!
The soldiers were fresh, well dressed, perfumed, wore garlands, ate drank and made merry. They gobbled more food even if they were full! The bouquet offered meat of goats and wild boars, soup, sweets and a host of other items. Liquor flowed generously like rivers. So did tasty porridge. Elegant earthern pots were filled with curds of a variety of flavors and colors. There was none in the army that didn’t wear bright clothes, whose hair was not done, who was not clean. Even the animals of the entourage were well nourished.
And then there were tooth brushes, powder, sandal paste, mirrors, clothes, sandals, combs, brushes to clean moustaches, weapons, bows, shields, guards and every other need. There were tanks of waters and heaps of grass for the animals that accompanied the army.
In this manner the large contingent of bharata experienced the fantastic hospitality of the outstanding host bharadwAja and enjoyed there like the gods enjoy in the nandana gardens of kubEra. It was indeed like a dreamland!
As every single soldier of that army enjoyed there the night wore off. And as it did, the apsaras, gandharvas and the lovely women attendants took leave of bharadwAja and returned to their celestial abodes. Even though the attendants returned, the soldiers of bharata was still inebriated, the fresh smell of sandal wood paste remained on their body. The garlands worn by them were crushed and were strewn all over! (Thus emphasizing that this all really took place was not a dream!)
Here we conclude the ninty first 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: 2.92. A prophecy made…
rAmabhaktisAmrAjyam 