SRI RAGHAVENDRA SWAMY’S SRI
RAMACHARITRYA MANJARI
(ಶ್ರೀ ರಾಘವೆಂದ್ರ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ ವಿರಚಿತ “ಶ್ರೀ ರಾಮಚಾರಿತ್ರ್ಯ
ಮಂಜರಿ)
The meeting of Bharata with Srirama is a
message to modern world about human relationships. Bharata appeals to Sri Rama
in several ways. He asks Rama to forgive the crime committed by his mother.
Protection of the empire and the subjects is the duty of the heir apparent or
the first son of a king and hence it was the duty of Rama to ascend the throne,
Bharata tells Rama. Bharata quotes Shastras and Scriptures. It cannot be
imagined in any corner of human mind that Rama was unaware of things that
Bharata was telling. They were not divulged for Rama but for creating awareness
among the people. Why Rama did not concede and stuck to his decision to
complete the fourteen-year forest exile was because his incarnation was solely
meant to relieve the earth from the tyranny of Ravana and Kumbhakarna. There is
another angle to this move of Rama. It must be remembered that Ravana and
Kumbhakarna had requested the Lord to die at his hands as enemies to return to
their gatekeepers’ job of Vaikuntha at the earliest. Both of them wanted to end their lives,
pretending to be enemies of Lord Vishnu. They became happy when Rama was born.
They were also praying Lord Vishnu in their hearts for an early end to their
showy life. For all these reasons, Lord Rama had to remain in the forest.
A question may arise that like the mind of
Kaikeyi had been corrupted by the bad suggestions of Manthara the mind of
Bharata might also get corrupted after his return to Ayodhya with the Paduka of
Sri Rama. But, Bharata was a committed devotee of the Lord. He was born as his
son Pradyumna. He was an incarnation of the Sudarshana, the Divine Disc, of
Narayana. On several occasions, this Divine Disc was the main weapon with which
the Lord has destroyed the demons. That is why, Sri Raghavendra Tirtharu has
employed the word “Nijam” in this stanza. It indicates that Bharata was the “original,
real and true” devotee of Vishnu.
Sri Madhwacharyaru, in his Mahabharata
Tatparya Nirnaya, has said: “Purajanasahitau jagmaturmAruBhishcha” indicating
that Bharata started his journey to the forest to meet his beloved brother Sri
Rama, along with citizens and mothers. He requested Kausalya Devi and Sumitra
Devi to accompany him, but wantonly did not ask his mother Kaikeyi to join. She
voluntarily joined the party. It was because Bharata was very much angry with
his mother for the “heinous injustice” she had done in his name, though he was
not at all a party for what she did. Sri Vadirajaru upholds the same vein of
thought and Sri Raghavendra Tirtharu follows the same line by not employing the
word “sahitau” in the third and the fourth stanzas.
An adjective “swAmbABhihi prapannam” has been
employed for Bharata by Sri Raghavendra Gurugalu in this context. This is to
indicate that even though Bharata exhibited his fury towards mother Kaikeyi,
Sri Rama never thought that what Kaikeyi had committed was a crime.
Just before sending off Bharata, sage
Vasishtha asked Rama to hand over his Golden Paduka (footwear) to Bharata so
that he could discharge the duties and responsibilities of a king in the name
of the Paduka. Bharata takes an oath here: “I will not enter Ayodhya till your
(Rama’s) return and if he (Rama) failed to turn up immediately after the expiry
of fourteen years, I will sacrifice my life by jumping into fire.” Bharata
wears the Paduka on his head, reaches Nandi village, performs the coronation of
Paduka there, sets up an Ashram there and starts living in that Ashram like a
saint, consuming roots and fruits. What a sacrifice! What a brotherhood!
In the next episode, background of crow-demon
Kurangasura, Jayanta (son of Indra) and other important points will be
discussed. Please read, comment and share. SDN
