# Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 98 — Bharata’s appeal and Rāma’s answer *Bharata asks him to restore the Kingdom, Rāma teaches the inevitability of loss, separation and death* Portion: The dispute over Kingship and duty · Verses: 71 · Ref format: 2.98. ## Sequence - After a sorrowful night, the brothers perform their morning rites and sit together again (98.1–3) - Bharata argues that if the Kingdom was given to him, he can now give it to Rāma → he says the responsibility is too great for him and compares the Kingdom to a breached embankment that only Rāma can repair (98.4–7) - he asks Rāma to let those who depend on him receive the benefit of his abilities and describes the welcome awaiting him in Ayodhyā (98.8–12) - Rāma answers that possessions end in loss, meetings in separation, and life in death (98.13–19) - each day diminishes life, even when people greet the passing days and seasons with joy (98.20–24) - relationships come together and part like pieces of wood meeting at sea; grief cannot reverse death (98.25–30) - he urges Bharata to honor their father's good life by carrying out his instruction, just as he himself will do (98.31–39). - Bharata admires Rāma's steadiness but argues that a good son should correct a father's harmful decision → he rejects Kaikeyī's action and asks Rāma to rescue the family and people from its consequences (98.40–55) - he says ruling and maintaining a household are appropriate duties for Rāma at this stage of life → he asks Vasiṣṭha to install Rāma there in the forest and offers once again to stay if Rāma will not return → Rāma remains firm, while the gathering joins Bharata's appeal (98.56–71). ## Verses **2.98.1** tataḥ puruṣasiṃhānāṃ vṛtānāṃ taiḥ suhṛdgaṇaiḥ śocatām eva rajanī duḥkhena vyatyavartata Then, for those lions among men, surrounded by their companies of friends, the night passed painfully as they went on grieving. **2.98.2** rajanyāṃ suprabhātāyāṃ bhrātaras te suhṛdvṛtāḥ mandākinyāṃ hutaṃ japyaṃ kṛtvā rāmam upāgaman When the night had brightened into fair dawn, those brothers, surrounded by their friends, having made oblation and muttered prayers on the Mandākinī, approached Rāma. **2.98.3** tūṣṇīṃ te samupāsīnā na kaś cit kiṃ cid abravīt bharatas tu suhṛnmadhye rāmavacanam abravīt They sat down together in silence; no one said anything. But Bharata, in the midst of the friends, spoke words to Rāma. **2.98.4** sāntvitā māmikā mātā dattaṃ rājyam idaṃ mama tad dadāmi tavaivāhaṃ bhuṅkṣva rājyam akaṇṭakam “My mother has been appeased; this kingdom has been given to me. That very kingdom I give to you alone—enjoy it, free of all opposition. **2.98.5** mahatevāmbuvegena bhinnaḥ setur jalāgame durāvāraṃ tvadanyena rājyakhaṇḍam idaṃ mahat Like a dyke breached by a mighty rush of water at the coming of the flood, this vast portion of a realm is hard for anyone but you to hold in check. **2.98.6** gatiṃ khara ivāśvasya tārkṣyasyeva patatriṇaḥ anugantuṃ na śaktir me gatiṃ tava mahīpate As a donkey cannot match the pace of a horse, or a common bird the flight of Tārkṣya (Garuḍa), so I have no power to follow your course, O lord of the earth. **2.98.7** sujīvaṃ nityaśas tasya yaḥ parair upajīvyate rāma tena tu durjīvaṃ yaḥ parān upajīvati Life is always easy for the man on whom others depend; but for him, Rāma, who must depend upon others, life is hard. **2.98.8** yathā tu ropito vṛkṣaḥ puruṣeṇa vivardhitaḥ hrasvakena durāroho rūḍhaskandho mahādrumaḥ Just as a tree planted and nurtured by a short man becomes a great tree, with grown trunk, hard for him to climb— **2.98.9** sa yadā puṣpito bhūtvā phalāni na vidarśayet sa tāṃ nānubhavet prītiṃ yasya hetoḥ prabhāvitaḥ —and when, having come into flower, it should yet show no fruit, the man would not enjoy that reward for the sake of which it was made to grow; **2.98.10** eṣopamā mahābāho tvam arthaṃ vettum arhasi yadi tvam asmān ṛṣabho bhartā bhṛtyān na śādhi hi This is a simile, O mighty-armed one; you ought to grasp its meaning: if you, our bull and lord, do not rule us your dependents [you are like that fruitless tree]. **2.98.11** śreṇayas tvāṃ mahārāja paśyantv agryāś ca sarvaśaḥ pratapantam ivādityaṃ rājye sthitam ariṃdamam Let the guilds and the foremost citizens on every side behold you, O great king, established in the kingdom, blazing like the sun, O tamer of foes. **2.98.12** tavānuyāne kākutṣṭha mattā nardantu kuñjarāḥ antaḥpura gatā nāryo nandantu susamāhitāḥ As you ride in procession, Kākutstha, let the rutting elephants trumpet, and let the women in the inner chambers rejoice, filled with contentment. **2.98.13** tasya sādhv ity amanyanta nāgarā vividhā janāḥ bharatasya vacaḥ śrutvā rāmaṃ pratyanuyācataḥ “Good!” thought the townsfolk, the various people, on hearing the speech of Bharata as he entreated Rāma in return. **2.98.14** tam evaṃ duḥkhitaṃ prekṣya vilapantaṃ yaśasvinam rāmaḥ kṛtātmā bharataṃ samāśvāsayad ātmavān Seeing the illustrious Bharata thus grieved and lamenting, the self-possessed Rāma, disciplined of soul, consoled him. **2.98.15** nātmanaḥ kāmakāro 'sti puruṣo 'yam anīśvaraḥ itaś cetarataś cainaṃ kṛtāntaḥ parikarṣati A man has no power to act as he wills over himself; he is not his own master. Fate drags him this way and that. **2.98.16** sarve kṣayāntā nicayāḥ patanāntāḥ samucchrayāḥ saṃyogā viprayogāntā maraṇāntaṃ ca jīvitam All accumulations end in depletion, all risings end in falls; all unions end in separation, and life ends in death. **2.98.17** yathā phalānaṃ pakvānāṃ nānyatra patanād bhayam evaṃ narasya jātasya nānyatra maraṇād bhayam Just as for ripe fruits there is no peril but falling, so for a man once born there is no peril but death. **2.98.18** yathāgāraṃ dṛḍhasthūṇaṃ jīrṇaṃ bhūtvāvasīdati tathāvasīdanti narā jarāmṛtyuvaśaṃ gatāḥ Just as a house with sturdy pillars, having grown old, sinks into ruin, so men sink down, fallen under the sway of old age and death. **2.98.19** ahorātrāṇi gacchanti sarveṣāṃ prāṇinām iha āyūṃṣi kṣapayanty āśu grīṣme jalam ivāṃśavaḥ The days and nights pass by, swiftly wasting away the life-spans of all living beings here, as the sun's rays dry up water in the summer. **2.98.20** ātmānam anuśoca tvaṃ kim anyam anuśocasi āyus te hīyate yasya sthitasya ca gatasya ca Grieve for yourself; why do you grieve for another? Your own life-span dwindles, whether you stay still or go about. **2.98.21** sahaiva mṛtyur vrajati saha mṛtyur niṣīdati gatvā sudīrgham adhvānaṃ saha mṛtyur nivartate Death walks along with a man, death sits beside him; and when he has gone a very long road, death returns along with him. **2.98.22** gātreṣu valayaḥ prāptāḥ śvetāś caiva śiroruhāḥ jarayā puruṣo jīrṇaḥ kiṃ hi kṛtvā prabhāvayet Wrinkles have settled upon the limbs and the hair has turned white; when a man is worn out by old age, by what means could he restore his vigor? **2.98.23** nandanty udita āditye nandanty astam ite ravau ātmano nāvabudhyante manuṣyā jīvitakṣayam Men rejoice when the sun has risen, they rejoice when the sun has set; yet they do not perceive the wasting-away of their own life. **2.98.24** hṛṣyanty ṛtumukhaṃ dṛṣṭvā navaṃ navam ihāgatam ṛtūnāṃ parivartena prāṇināṃ prāṇasaṃkṣayaḥ They delight to see the onset of a season, ever new, come round again; yet by the turning of the seasons comes the wasting-away of creatures' lives. **2.98.25** yathā kāṣṭhaṃ ca kāṣṭhaṃ ca sameyātāṃ mahārṇave sametya ca vyapeyātāṃ kālam āsādya kaṃ cana Just as one log and another log may meet on the great ocean, and having met, drift apart again after some length of time— **2.98.26** evaṃ bhāryāś ca putrāś ca jñātayaś ca vasūni ca sametya vyavadhāvanti dhruvo hy eṣāṃ vinābhavaḥ —so wives and sons and kinsmen and riches, having come together, run apart; for their separation is certain. **2.98.27** nātra kaś cid yathā bhāvaṃ prāṇī samabhivartate tena tasmin na sāmarthyaṃ pretasyāsty anuśocataḥ Here no living creature can make things unfold according to its own will; therefore a mourner has no power over the departed. **2.98.28** yathā hi sārthaṃ gacchantaṃ brūyāt kaś cit pathi sthitaḥ aham apy āgamiṣyāmi pṛṣṭhato bhavatām iti For just as someone standing on the road might say to a passing caravan, “I too shall come along behind you”— **2.98.29** evaṃ pūrvair gato mārgaḥ pitṛpaitāmaho dhruvaḥ tam āpannaḥ kathaṃ śoced yasya nāsti vyatikramaḥ —so is the road our forefathers travelled, the sure road of fathers and grandfathers; having entered upon it, how should one grieve, when from it there is no escape? **2.98.30** vayasaḥ patamānasya srotaso vānivartinaḥ ātmā sukhe niyoktavyaḥ sukhabhājaḥ prajāḥ smṛtāḥ As one's lifetime slips away like a stream that never turns back, the self should be set upon happiness; for creatures are ordained to have their share of joy. **2.98.31** dharmātmā sa śubhaiḥ kṛtsnaiḥ kratubhiś cāptadakṣiṇaiḥ dhūtapāpo gataḥ svargaṃ pitā naḥ pṛthivīpatiḥ That righteous soul, our father the lord of the earth, by all his auspicious sacrifices with their fees duly bestowed, has shaken off all sin and gone to heaven. **2.98.32** bhṛtyānāṃ bharaṇāt samyak prajānāṃ paripālanāt arthādānāc ca dhārmeṇa pitā nas tridivaṃ gataḥ By duly maintaining his dependents, by protecting his subjects, and by acquiring wealth righteously, our father has gone to the third heaven. **2.98.33** iṣṭvā bahuvidhair yajñair bhogāṃś cāvāpya puṣkalān uttamaṃ cāyur āsādya svar gataḥ pṛthivīpatiḥ Having sacrificed with manifold sacrifices, having won abundant enjoyments, and having attained the fullest span of life, the lord of the earth has gone to heaven. **2.98.34** sa jīrṇaṃ mānuṣaṃ dehaṃ parityajya pitā hi naḥ daivīm ṛddhim anuprāpto brahmalokavihāriṇīm For our father, casting off his worn-out human body, has attained the divine prosperity that ranges in the world of Brahmā. **2.98.35** taṃ tu naivaṃ vidhaḥ kaś cit prājñaḥ śocitum arhati tvadvidho yadvidhaś cāpi śrutavān buddhimattaraḥ No wise man of such a kind ought to grieve for him—one like you, or such a one, learned and of superior intellect. **2.98.36** ete bahuvidhāḥ śokā vilāpa rudite tathā varjanīyā hi dhīreṇa sarvāvasthāsu dhīmatā These manifold griefs, and likewise lamentation and weeping, are to be shunned by a steadfast, wise man in all circumstances. **2.98.37** sa svastho bhava mā śoco yātvā cāvasa tāṃ purīm tathā pitrā niyukto 'si vaśinā vadatāmv vara So be composed, do not grieve; go and dwell in that city. For so were you commanded by our self-controlled father, O best of speakers. **2.98.38** yatrāham api tenaiva niyuktaḥ puṇyakarmaṇā tatraivāhaṃ kariṣyāmi pitur āryasya śāsanam In that very duty to which I too was appointed by him of holy deeds, there I shall carry out the command of my noble father. **2.98.39** na mayā śāsanaṃ tasya tyaktuṃ nyāyyam ariṃdama tat tvayāpi sadā mānyaṃ sa vai bandhuḥ sa naḥ pitā It is not right for me to abandon his command, O tamer of foes; and by you too it must ever be honored—he is indeed our kinsman, he our father. **2.98.40** evam uktvā tu virate rāme vacanam arthavat uvāca bharataś citraṃ dhārmiko dhārmikaṃ vacaḥ When Rāma, having spoken thus, had ceased his meaningful words, the righteous Bharata spoke a remarkable and righteous speech. **2.98.41** ko hi syād īdṛśo loke yādṛśas tvam ariṃdama na tvāṃ pravyathayed duḥkhaṃ prītir vā na praharṣayet Who in the world could be such as you, O tamer of foes? No sorrow could shake you, no joy could elate you. **2.98.42** saṃmataś cāsi vṛddhānāṃ tāṃś ca pṛcchasi saṃśayān yathā mṛtas tathā jīvan yathāsati tathā sati You are esteemed by the elders, and you consult them upon your doubts; to you the dead is as the living, non-being as being. **2.98.43** yasyaiṣa buddhilābhaḥ syāt paritapyeta kena saḥ sa evaṃ vyasanaṃ prāpya na viṣīditum arhati For one who has attained such wisdom—by what could he be tormented? Such a man, meeting with calamity, ought not to despair. **2.98.44** amaropamasattvas tvaṃ mahātmā satyasaṃgaraḥ sarvajñaḥ sarvadarśī ca buddhimāṃś cāsi rāghava You are of a nature like the immortals, great-souled, true to your word; you are all-knowing, all-seeing, and wise, O Rāghava. **2.98.45** na tvām evaṃ guṇair yuktaṃ prabhavābhavakovidam aviṣahyatamaṃ duḥkham āsādayitum arhati Endowed with such virtues, skilled in origination and dissolution, you should not be overtaken by even the most unbearable sorrow. **2.98.46** proṣite mayi yat pāpaṃ mātrā matkāraṇāt kṛtam kṣudrayā tad aniṣṭaṃ me prasīdatu bhavān mama Whatever wicked deed my base mother did for my sake while I was away—that is hateful to me; may you be gracious to me. **2.98.47** dharmabandhena baddho 'smi tenemāṃ neha mātaram hanmi tīvreṇa daṇḍena daṇḍārhāṃ pāpakāriṇīm I am bound by the bond of dharma; therefore I do not here slay this mother of mine with harsh punishment, evil-doer though she be and deserving of it. **2.98.48** kathaṃ daśarathāj jātaḥ śuddhābhijanakarmaṇaḥ jānan dharmam adharmiṣṭhaṃ kuryāṃ karma jugupsitam How could I, born of Daśaratha of pure lineage and deeds, and knowing dharma, do a most unrighteous, contemptible act? **2.98.49** guruḥ kriyāvān vṛddhaś ca rājā pretaḥ piteti ca tātaṃ na parigarheyaṃ daivataṃ ceti saṃsadi He was my elder, a doer of rites, aged, a king, now dead, and my father—and a very deity: for these reasons I would not reproach my father in an assembly. **2.98.50** ko hi dharmārthayor hīnam īdṛśaṃ karma kilbiṣam striyāḥ priyacikīrṣuḥ san kuryād dharmajña dharmavit For what man who knows dharma, O knower of dharma, would—wishing to please a woman—do such a sinful deed, devoid of both dharma and profit? **2.98.51** antakāle hi bhūtāni muhyantīti purāśrutiḥ rājñaivaṃ kurvatā loke pratyakṣā sā śrutiḥ kṛtā “At the hour of their end, beings become deluded”—so runs the ancient saying; and the king, by acting thus, has made that saying manifest before the world. **2.98.52** sādhv artham abhisaṃdhāya krodhān mohāc ca sāhasāt tātasya yad atikrāntaṃ pratyāharatu tad bhavān Wisely fixing your aim on what is right, may you undo that transgression of our father's which sprang from anger, delusion, and rashness. **2.98.53** pitur hi samatikrāntaṃ putro yaḥ sādhu manyate tad apatyaṃ mataṃ loke viparītam ato 'nyathā The son who deems his father's transgression proper is reckoned mere offspring in the world; the son of the opposite mind is quite otherwise [the worthy one]. **2.98.54** tad apatyaṃ bhavān astu mā bhavān duṣkṛtaṃ pituḥ abhipat tat kṛtaṃ karma loke dhīravigarhitam Be you that [worthy] offspring; do not, sir, take upon yourself your father's misdeed—that deed done which is censured by the steadfast in the world. **2.98.55** kaikeyīṃ māṃ ca tātaṃ ca suhṛdo bāndhavāṃś ca naḥ paurajānapadān sarvāṃs trātu sarvam idaṃ bhavān May you save Kaikeyī, and me, and our father, our friends and our kinsmen, and all the town- and country-folk—all this, may you preserve. **2.98.56** kva cāraṇyaṃ kva ca kṣātraṃ kva jaṭāḥ kva ca pālanam īdṛśaṃ vyāhataṃ karma na bhavān kartum arhati Where is forest life, and where the warrior's calling? Where the matted locks, and where the ruling of a realm? Such a self-contradictory course you ought not to follow. **2.98.57** atha kleśajam eva tvaṃ dharmaṃ caritum icchasi dharmeṇa caturo varṇān pālayan kleśam āpnuhi But if you wish to practise a dharma born of hardship, then win your hardship by righteously protecting the four varṇas! **2.98.58** caturṇām āśramāṇāṃ hi gārhasthyaṃ śreṣṭham āśramam āhur dharmajña dharmajñās taṃ kathaṃ tyaktum arhasi Of the four stages of life the knowers of dharma call householdership the best, O knower of dharma; how then can you forsake it? **2.98.59** śrutena bālaḥ sthānena janmanā bhavato hy aham sa kathaṃ pālayiṣyāmi bhūmiṃ bhavati tiṣṭhati In learning, in rank, and in birth I am but a child beside you; how then, such as I am, shall I govern the earth while you yet live? **2.98.60** hīnabuddhiguṇo bālo hīnaḥ sthānena cāpy aham bhavatā ca vinā bhūto na vartayitum utsahe Deficient in intellect and virtue, a mere boy, and inferior too in station, and bereft of you, I am not able to carry on. **2.98.61** idaṃ nikhilam avyagraṃ pitryaṃ rājyam akaṇṭakam anuśādhi svadharmeṇa dharmajña saha bāndhavaiḥ This entire ancestral kingdom, undisturbed and free of thorns, rule by your own dharma, O knower of dharma, together with our kinsmen. **2.98.62** ihaiva tvābhiṣiñcantu dharmajña saha bāndhavaiḥ ṛtvijaḥ savasiṣṭhāś ca mantravan mantrakovidāḥ Right here, O knower of dharma, let the priests skilled in the sacred formulas, together with Vasiṣṭha and with our kinsmen, consecrate you with the mantras. **2.98.63** abhiṣiktas tvam asmābhir ayodhyāṃ pālane vraja vijitya tarasā lokān marudbhir iva vāsavaḥ Once consecrated by us, go to rule Ayodhyā, having swiftly conquered the worlds as Vāsava (Indra) conquered them with the Maruts. **2.98.64** ṛṇāni trīṇy apākurvan durhṛdaḥ sādhu nirdahan suhṛdas tarpayan kāmais tvam evātrānuśādhi mām Discharging the three debts, utterly burning up your enemies, and gratifying your friends with the fulfilment of their desires—rule me here yourself. **2.98.65** adyārya muditāḥ santu suhṛdas te 'bhiṣecane adya bhītāḥ pālayantāṃ durhṛdas te diśo daśa Today, noble one, let your friends rejoice at your consecration; today let your enemies, in fear, take to the ten directions. **2.98.66** ākrośaṃ mama mātuś ca pramṛjya puruṣarṣabha adya tatra bhavantaṃ ca pitaraṃ rakṣa kilbiṣāt Wiping away the reproach upon me and upon my mother, O bull among men, save today too our revered father from sin. **2.98.67** śirasā tvābhiyāce 'haṃ kuruṣva karuṇāṃ mayi bāndhaveṣu ca sarveṣu bhūteṣv iva maheśvaraḥ With my head bowed I implore you: show compassion upon me and upon all our kinsmen, as the Great Lord (Śiva) does upon all beings. **2.98.68** atha vā pṛṣṭhataḥ kṛtvā vanam eva bhavān itaḥ gamiṣyati gamiṣyāmi bhavatā sārdham apy aham Or else, if you, turning your back on the city, will go from here to the forest, then I too will go along with you. **2.98.69** tathāpi rāmo bharatena tāmyata prasādyamānaḥ śirasā mahīpatiḥ na caiva cakre gamanāya sattvavān matiṃ pitus tadvacane pratiṣṭhitaḥ Even so, though the anguished Bharata entreated him with bowed head, Rāma, lord of the earth and full of resolve, did not set his mind upon returning, fixed as he was upon that command of his father. **2.98.70** tad adbhutaṃ sthairyam avekṣya rāghave samaṃ jano harṣam avāpa duḥkhitaḥ na yāty ayodhyām iti duḥkhito 'bhavat sthirapratijñatvam avekṣya harṣitaḥ Beholding that wondrous steadfastness in Rāghava, the sorrowing people felt at once both grief and joy—grieved that he would not go to Ayodhyā, yet gladdened to behold his firmness of resolve. **2.98.71** tam ṛtvijo naigamayūthavallabhās tathā visaṃjñāśrukalāś ca mātaraḥ tathā bruvāṇaṃ bharataṃ pratuṣṭuvuḥ praṇamya rāmaṃ ca yayācire saha The priests, the leaders dear to the throngs of townsfolk, and likewise the mothers, swooning and choked with tears, extolled Bharata as he spoke thus; and bowing to Rāma, they entreated him together with him.