24. BHARATA ARRIVES :

Kausalya clung to the King's body and
cried: "I shall go with the King to Yama's
abode. How can I live without my son and
without my husband?"



The elders and officers of the palace
managed to separate her from the dead
King and take her away. Then they
discussed about the funeral rites. They
could not be performed immediately, for
Rama and Lakshmana had gone to the
forest and Bharata and Satrughna were far
away in their uncle's place. It was decided
to send for Bharata and to keep the body
immersed in oil till his arrival.



The great monarch's remains were thus
kept waiting for Bharata's arrival.
Ayodhya, the city of splendor, was sunk
in darkness and lamentation. Crowds of
women met here and there and reviled
Kaikeyi. There was anxiety in men's
hearts. The crown prince had gone to the
forest. Bharata too was far away. Anarchy
was feared, for no one in those days could
imagine a people going on without a king.



After the long night had passed, the
ministers, officers and elders assembled in
the hall in the morning. Markandeya,
Vamadeva, Kashyapa, Katyayana,
Gautama, Jabali and other learned men,
with Sumantra and the other ministers,
bowed to Vasishtha and said:




"Sir, the night we have passed was like
a century. The King is no more. Rama and
Lakshmana are in the forest. Bharata and
Satrughna are in far off Kekaya in their
grandfather's house. Someone must
forthwith be asked to take up the
responsibility of rule. A land without a
king cannot survive. Order will disappear,
son will not obey father, nor wife her
husband. The rains will hold back.



Thieves and robbers will range at will.
There will be no mutual trust among
people. Neither agriculture nor trade can
flourish. Without a king, the land must
lose its prosperity. The springs of charity
will dry up. Festivals and services will
cease to be performed in temples. There
will be no expounding of Shastras or
epics, nor any listeners. People will no
more sleep with doors open. Culture will
decline and soon disappear. Penances,
vows, enjoyments, learning, all depend on
the king's protection. The beauty of
women will vanish. The sense of security
will be lost. Men will eat one another up
as, fish do. Cruelty and misery will grow
apace and lay waste the land. For good to
prosper and evil to be restrained, a king is
essential."



Thus Valmiki describes at length the
dangers of anarchy through the mouths of
leaders in that assembly.
"It looks as if a great darkness has
enveloped the land," they said. "Dharma is
in danger. Let us forthwith secure a king."
Vasishtha sent for tried messengers and
said to them: "Start at once. Go straight
and swift to Kekaya. See that you wear no
sign of sorrow on your face or show it in
your behavior. Bharata should not know
that the King is dead. Tell him simply that
the family preceptor and ministers want
his presence at once in Ayodhya and bring
him along with you with all the speed you
may. Tell him nothing about Rama and
Sita going to the forest or the King's death
on account of grief. To avoid all
suspicion, take with you the usual gifts of
jewels and precious garments for
presentation to the King of Kekaya."



From this we can understand the
meaning of what the Shastras and Kural
say about Truth. Truthfulness should be
such that it needlessly hurts no being in
the world. The test for right conduct
including truthfulness is harmlessness.
This does not mean that truth is
underrated.



Soon the messengers were provisioned
and equipped for the long journey and
furnished with gifts of honor. Mounted on
swift and sturdy horses, they sped past
rivers and forests, up hill and down dale,
and reached Kekaya, which was
somewhere to the west of the modern
Punjab, and found themselves in
Rajagriha, its capital, where the Ikshvaku
princes were residing in the palace of their
maternal uncle. They decided to wait on
the princes the next morning.



The night the messengers arrived,
Bharata had evil dreams and woke up in
the morning filled with anxiety as to what
they might portend. His face showed the
state of his mind. His companions tried to
entertain him with dance and mirth to
make him forget his cares, but did not
succeed.
We still do not know all the secrets of
nature and the telepathy of affection.



Maybe, Dasaratha's mental anguish and
death throes reached Bharata across space
and caused him his bad dreams. He said to
himself: "It seems to me that death is
approaching my brother Rama or
Lakshmana or myself. They say that an
early morning dream does not fail to be
fulfilled. And mine has been a terrible
dream. I am full of fear. I know not what
to do."



Just then the messengers were
announced. The King of Kekaya and his
son Yudhajit received the envoys with due
courtesy.



They paid their respects to the King
and that princes, then turned to Bharata
and said:
"The priests and ministers send you
their blessings and request you to return at
once to Ayodhya. They want us to convey
to you that the need for your presence
there is most urgent. Please touch for
acceptance these garments and jewels to
be given to your uncle and to the King as
gifts from the palace of Ayodhya."



Bharata questioned the messengers
after the welfare of all at home. The
manner of his inquiry suggests that he had
an uneasy premonition that his mother's
headstrong and ambitious nature might
have had something to do with this hasty
summons home. "And is my mother, the
haughty and irascible Queen Kaikeyi who
believes herself all-wise and must always
have her way, is she in good health?"



The messengers must have been at
their wits' end for an answer. The best
they could make was: "O tiger among
men, all are well whose welfare is dear to
you. Lakshmi, the goddess of sovereignty,
whose abode is the lotus, woos you. Get
into your chariot without loss of time."



There was an enigmatic thought in this
greeting, for according to them Bharata
was to be installed on the throne.
The prince took leave of his uncle and
grandfather for returning home and
preparations were made for his departure.



The old king and Yudhajit collected rare
and valuable things of their country to be
sent as gifts to King Dasaratha and Prince
Rama of Ayodhya. Bharata and Satrughna
mounted their chariots and started with a
big retinue towards Ayodhya. They
travelled fast, unmindful of fatigue, and
by forced marches reached Ayodhya on
the morning of the eighth day.



As he approached the city, Bharata's
mind was filled with misgiving. Nothing
seemed to be as it was before, and the air
seemed heavy with disaster. He asked the
charioteer: "Why does the city wear such
a strange look? I do not see the usual
crowds of people going in and coming out
in the gardens outside the city. One used
to see young men and women with bright,
cheerful faces. But now they all seem
sad."



Bharata's chariot entered the city
through the Victory Gate. The streets,
houses and temples were bare and
unadorned. The faces of the people looked
drawn and famished.



"Why are the musical instruments
silent?" he asked. "Why are the citizens
not decked with flowers and sandal paste?
These are all bad signs. I cannot repress
my anxiety."



Inauspicious omens were seen
everywhere. Bharata concluded that some
great misfortune had overtaken the city
and that was the reason why he had been
so hastily sent for. He entered Dasaratha's
palace. The King was not to be seen. His
anxiety increased.



He then entered Kaikeyi's palace.
When she saw her son after a long
absence, she jumped from her golden
couch to embrace him. He bent down and
touched her feet. She kissed his head and
welcomed him with maternal blessings.
"Did you have a good journey?" she
asked. "Are your uncle and grandfather
well? Tell me all about them."



He answered: "The journey took seven
days. All our people at Kekaya are happy
and well. Grandfather and uncle send you
their love. They have sent rich gifts for
you, but these will arrive later. I have
come in advance. The envoys hurried me,
saying there was urgent work demanding
my presence here. What is all this about? I
went to the King's palace to pay him my
respects. He was not to be found there and
here too his couch is empty. Perhaps he is
with one of my senior mothers. I must go
and see him and tender my respects."



When Bharata, innocent of heart and
unaware of what had happened, said this,
the foolish queen intoxicated with a new
sense of power answered: "My child, your
father had his full share of the blessings of
this life. His fame was great. He
performed all the sacrifices enjoined by
tradition. He was a refuge for the good.
He has now entered the higher world and
joined the gods."



On hearing this, Bharata fell down
uttering a cry, his long arms stretched out
on the ground. Rising, he looked at his
father's empty bed and sobbed like a
destitute orphan. The mighty hero threw
his god-like frame on the earth and wept
like a child in uncontrolled grief.



Looking at her son, who lay on the
ground like a big tree fallen to the axe,
Kaikeyi said: "Arise, O King. Stand up. It
is not right for a king thus to mourn and
roll on the ground. Honor and glory are
waiting for your acceptance. You are to
uphold the dharma and perform sacrifices
in the way of your royal fathers. Your
intelligence shines like the noonday sun.
No misfortune dare come near you. Son,
strong of limb and brave-hearted, stand
up."



Bharata's mind was immaculate,
spotless. He did not see all that Kaikeyi
had put in this her appeal!



After lamenting long, he got up and
said: "When I went to my uncle's house I
had hoped that Rama's installation as
Yuvaraja would come off soon and that on
my return I would see the great festive
ceremonies. How differently have things
turned out! How am I to bear this
calamity? No more shall I see my father's
'face. What did he die of? How did he get
the illness? And I was not by his side
when he lay sick! It was given to Rama to
tend him in his last moments. How
affectionate the King was towards me! If
some dust settled on my body, he would
wipe it with his hand. And how soft and
pleasing was his touch! And it was not
given me to serve him in his need. But
mother where is Rama? Hereafter he is
both father and preceptor to me. I must
see him at once and kiss his feet. He is
now my sole refuge. What was my father's
last message to me? I want his very
words."



Kaikeyi's answer had to be consistent
both with truth and her designs. She was
pulled in contrary directions by her
culture and her ambition. She found words
which conveyed that the King did not
think of Bharata in his last moments. She
also wished to prepare him for the rest of
the news. She said: "Your father breathed
his last crying, 'Ha, Rama, Ha,
Lakshmana, Ha, Janaki.' These were his
last words." He died saying: "It is not
given me to live to see Rama, Lakshmana
and Sita return. Happy they who will see
their return."



Listening to this, Bharata gathered that
Rama and Lakshmana too were absent
from the Kings side. His grief increased
and he asked Kaikeyi: "Where. Were
they? What business took them away from
our father's side during his last moments?"
Hoping to pacify him, Kaikeyi said:
"My son, Rama put on the garments of an
ascetic and, taking Lakshmana and Sita
with him, went to the Dandaka forest."



Bharata's amazement now knew no
bounds. He asked: "I understand nothing
of what you are saying. What sin did
Rama commit that he should undertake
such expiation? Did be rob any Brahmana
or cause bodily hurt to any innocent
person or desire somebody else's wife?
Why did he have to go to the forest? Who
laid on him this penance?"



In those days people went of their own
will or were sent to the forest as a
purifying punishment for such and other
heinous crimes. Now Kaikeyi shaken out
of silence by this tempest of questions
came out with the truth foolishly hoping
for the best.



"Rama committed no crime. He neither
robbed nor harmed anyone. And it was
not in Rama's nature to cast eyes of desire
at other people's wives. What happened
was that, seeing that preparations were
afoot for installing him as crown prince
and regent, I approached the King for
your sake and secured the fulfillment of
two boons he had long ago granted to me.
I asked that the kingdom should go to you
and that Rama should be exiled to the
forest. Bound by his past promise, the
King agreed. Rama has therefore gone to
the forest with Sita and Lakshmana.




Unable to bear this separation, your father
expired of grief. Do not waste yourself in
vain lamentations now. Think now what
you should do. You know dharma. Your
duty is to accept the burden of kingship. I
did all this for your sake and you should
accept the fruit of my action in the spirit
in which I acted. The city and kingdom
have come into your possession without
your wanting or working for it. Following
the injunctions of Vasishtha and other
learned men, perform duly your father's
obsequies and then prepare for the
coronation. You are a Kshatriya. You
have inherited your father's kingdom.
Attend to what has fallen to you as your
duty."


Next :-25. INTRIGUE WASTED.


Continues......