||Sri Ram Jeyram Jay Jay Ram ||

 

Chapter – 35– Ayodhya Kandam

 Bharatha arrives in Theertharaj Prayag

Bharatha continues “Oh! Sakha, I have not heard of Rama speaking about sorrows in his life. King took great care of him like his Prana, mothers took care of him like their eyeballs, and they have protected him like the serpent that keeps the gem on its forehead. I cannot believe that Rama living on fruits and fiber roots as the meals, walking all around the forest without sandals on his feet. My mother Kaikeyi has become the cause for all the inauspiciousness, she has become the enemy of her own beloved husband, and she is a cursed one.  I am the unfortunate one, ocean of sins, and cause for all those troubles. I am the cursed one, has become the blemished one in the clan and enemy of my own mother.” Nishadha Raja comforted Bharatha “Oh! Prabho, do not worry about anything; the truth is Rama is most promising to you and vice versa.  The fate is too cruel some times, that is the reason Mother Kaikeyi has turned against Rama. Lord Rama constantly praised you that night; I have no words to praise his love for you. Tulsidas promise you, there is no one on the Earth dearer than you for him, therefore everything will end auspiciously, and stay in peace. Rama is the knower of the hearts of all, he is the essence of kindness and compassion, hence be optimistic and take rest for a while.” Bharatha was calmed by Guha and he returned to his place of stay, contemplating Lord Rama.

 

The villagers have enthusiastically arrived in the place where Rama stayed in Shrugabheripura, they circumambulated the Vatavruksha and the grass bed, shed tears of extreme grief, cursed Kaikeyi and the fate, some of them highly appreciated Bharatha for his decision to visit Rama, others highly praised that Bharatha proved his love for his elder brother, and praised Nishadharaja as well. It is difficult to describe the plight of the people of Ayodhya. In this way, all those people spend their night without sleep; they began to cross the river Ganga in the early hours of dawn. Sage Vashishta and Vamadeva took a seat in a well-decorated ferry, queens settled in a newly constructed ferry, and in an hour and a half, all of them reached on the other side of the river Ganga. Bharatha went to make sure everyone has crossed the river safely; he began the performance of morning ablutions and sun worship.   He prostrated before mothers and preceptors. The people of Nishadha and the King guided them to deep in the forest; Bharatha has arranged palanquin for mothers, preceptors, twice-born, and elderly people. The two brothers Bharatha and Shathrughna prostrated before Suranadhi and started journey contemplating upon Lord Rama, along with Sita and Lakshman. They walked through the dense forest and harsh pathways, along the side of their horses. The attendants of Nishadharaja requested them to mount on horse and travel, but his heart did not allow climbing on horse and travel, Bharatha’s heart was not willing to do it, where his brother Rama walked all the way without sandals or any protection. He refused to climb on horses, he felt that in fact he should walk with the head for the sin committed, listening to the remorseful words of Bharatha the attendants became extremely miserable.

 

It was in the afternoon, the procession arrived on the sacred land of Prayaga, all the way Bharatha kept calling for ‘Rama, Sita’ out of love, his footsteps resembled the droplets in the lotus flower, the villagers were becoming sad listening that Bharatha covered several miles of the day by foot. Everyone took a bath in the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna, and Saraswathi, he went to have a dip and performed charities to the twice-born according to the prescribed rites. He watched the beauty of fair and dark colors of the water of Ganga and Yamuna, and its powerful water currents. Bharatha prayed with folded hands “Oh! Theertharaj, you fulfill all the desires of the worshiper, your splendor is widely spoken in Veda, and the whole world knows your grandeur. I am leaving the Kshathriyadharma/Swadharma, and begging you, the intellectuals, and the generous contributor/ philanthropist fulfills the desires of the beggar. Oh! Theertharaj, I have no desires in wealth, Dharma, or the Kama, or Nirvana, kindly shower the boon to have sincere devotion at the lotus feet of Rama in every birth. I do not want any boons other intense devotion at the feet of Rama.  Oh! Theertharaj, let Rama consider me as wicked, let the people of Ayodhya think of me deceitful against preceptor, or deity, I want a boon from you to have intense devotion at the lotus feet of Sita Rama, like the Chathaka bird, yearn to have a downpour, leaving waters in the streams. It won’t stop calling for the rainclouds until it achieves the raindrops. A devotee achieves auspiciousness with the sincere devotion at the lotus feet of Lord like the precious yellow metal undergoes transformation under the blazing fire to become exquisite ornaments.”

 

A divine voice raised form the waters of Thriveni “ Oh! Beloved Bharatha, you are an ascetic, your devotion to the lotus feet of Rama is incomparable, you are unnecessarily holding grief in your heart, you are most beloved of Rama and there is no one dearer than Rama to you.” Bharatha could not control his happiness; the deities showered flowers on Bharatha and praised his fortune to have intense devotion at the lotus feet of Rama. The ascetics, twice-born and people of Prayaga, Brahmachari, Grihastha, Sanyasis, and Vanaprastha became happy to meet Bharatha, and they found the shortage of words to praise the devotion and love of Bharatha to his elder brother Rama. They described the virtues of Rama on the way to the hermitage of Sage Bharadhwaja.  Thus, the large procession arrived in the hermitage of Sage Bharadhwaja, Bharatha prostrated before the Sage was embraced affectionately and blessed him. Sage offered seats to Bharatha and the people accompanied, he took a seat before the Sage and sat head hung down, was expecting queries from him.