Bhumija

CHAPTER 7

All the people of Ayodhya were very happy to hear the news of Rama and his brother's marriage. The people decorated the whole kingdom with beautiful flowers, fountains, colourful rangolis, etc for welcoming the newly wedded couples. 

Now, king Dasharatha was planning to crown Rama as the king of Ayodhya. Every body including the people of that city were dancing with happiness. All loved Rama and were eagerly waiting for the crowning of Rama as the king.

But there was a maid in that kingdom...she was the maid of King Dasharatha's third wife Kaikeyi named Manthara. She was very jealous about this matter as she wanted Kaikeyi's son Bharat to become the king. 

she told Kaikeyi, "arey rajkumari ji...this is not the time to be happy! For what are you happy? Instead of your son, Rama is becoming the king. and rhis is making you happy. What kind of mother you are? go convince the king not to make Rama the king. And do you remember...you had helped the king once and he had promised you that he will give you two boons. This is the time to make use of it. Go ask him for it right now Rajkumari!!"

  And indeed Kaikeyi was convinved about the injustice being done to her son Bharat! She was angry and did not come out ot greet her husband Dasharatha. Therefore, the king himself went her chamber and inquired about her well being. In fact the king loved queen Kaikeyi the most!

But today the words of Manthara had done their trick. Queen Kaikeyi reminded Dasharatha about the two boons he had promised her years back. The king remembered and was in fact pleased to grant the boons on that auspicious day. And as the fate had it, Kaikeyi asked:

1. Of the first boon, O my beloved husband, I ask that instead of Rama Bharata be given the throne of Ayodhya, and,

2. Of the second boon, I ask for the banishment of Rama to the forest for fourteen years.

The king was not prepared for such unusual demands. He tried to persuade the queen to ask for something else, but no. Kaikeyi was firm in her resolve. The king went for compromise in granting the throne to Bharata but pleaded with his queen not to insist to send Rama to Forest. But still, no. Kaikeyi was firm on both the counts.

King Dasharatha was heartbroken on listening to the resolve of Kaikeyi to send Rama to the forest for fourteen years. He could not imagine even in dream that his most beloved son Rama would be put to such an acid test. He knew that the separation from Rama would be the last thing his old and frail body could tolerate. With heavy heart, he pleaded with his wife, "O Kaikeyi, what has possessed your kind heart! Why has your love for Rama disappeared! Please say that you are speaking in jest, and that you are not serious about your two demands."

"Ask for anything else. Ask for many palaces and jewelry, ask for army of thousand of elephants and horses, ask for my life, but spare my Rama from the hardships of forest and banishment to the life of recluse. I grant Bharata the throne of Ayodhya."

But, no. Kaikeyi was firm as a rock in her demands. Said she, "Come what may, you must keep your word of honour. If you fail, you will see my corpse at the sunrise next morning." She also reminded the King about the lofty tradition of keeping promises even at the cost of life in the Raghu dynasty.

The news reached the chamber of Rama and Sita, as also all around the palace, that something grossly inopportune has happened to the king, and that he is ill in the chamber of Kaikeyi. The prime minister - Sumanta - was summoned by the king to fetch Rama to the chamber of Kaikeyi.

When Rama reached there he saw his father lying semiconscious on the floor full of grief and pathos. His eyes were filled with tears of desperation and sorrow. Rama pleaded with Kaikeyi to tell him what had happened to his father. When the whole story of the promises etc. was told, Rama understood the situation very well. He knew that both King Dasharatha and himself are caught in a situation that demanded supreme sacrifice. Bharata was not present in Ayodhya during all these happenings.