Kausalya's Lament and the King's Body Preserved

Shloka 1 (ayodhya.66.1)

तमग्निमिव संशान्तमम्बुहीनमिवार्णवम्। हतप्रभमिवादित्यं स्वर्गस्थं प्रेक्ष्य भूमिपम्॥ २-६६-१ ॥

tamagnimiva saṃśāntamambuhīnamivārṇavam| hataprabhamivādityaṃ svargasthaṃ prekṣya bhūmipam

Seeing that king, now gone to heaven, like a fire fully extinguished, like an ocean bereft of water, like the sun dimmed of its luster,

Shloka 2 (ayodhya.66.2)

कौसल्या बाष्पपूर्णाक्षी विविधं शोककर्शिता। उपगृह्य शिरो राज्ञः कैकेयीं प्रत्यभाषत॥ २-६६-२ ॥

kausalyā bāṣpapūrṇākṣī vividhaṃ śokakarśitā| upagṛhya śiro rājñaḥ kaikeyīṃ pratyabhāṣata

Kausalya, her eyes filled with tears and wasted by grief of many kinds, took the king's head upon her lap and spoke thus to Kaikeyi.

Shloka 3 (ayodhya.66.3)

सकामा भव कैकेयि भुङ्क्ष्व राज्यमकण्टकम्। त्यक्त्वा राजानमेकाग्रा नृशंसे दुष्टचारिणि॥ २-६६-३ ॥

sakāmā bhava kaikeyi bhuṅkṣva rājyamakaṇṭakam| tyaktvā rājānamekāgrā nṛśaṃse duṣṭacāriṇi

"Be satisfied, O Kaikeyi; enjoy the kingdom now without a thorn, having abandoned the king, single-minded in your own desire, O cruel one, O evil-doer!"

Shloka 4 (ayodhya.66.4)

विहाय मां गतो रामो भर्ता च स्वर्गतो मम। विपथे सार्थहीनेव नाहं जीवितुमुत्सहे॥ २-६६-४ ॥

vihāya māṃ gato rāmo bhartā ca svargato mama| vipathe sārthahīneva nāhaṃ jīvitumutsahe

"Rama has gone, leaving me, and my husband too has gone to heaven; like a woman left behind by her caravan on a wrong road, I do not have the courage to go on living."

Shloka 5 (ayodhya.66.5)

भर्तारं तं परित्यज्य का स्त्री दैवतमात्मनः। इच्छेज्जीवितुमन्यत्र कैकेय्यास्त्यक्तधर्मणः॥ २-६६-५ ॥

bhartāraṃ taṃ parityajya kā strī daivatamātmanaḥ| icchejjīvitumanyatra kaikeyyāstyaktadharmaṇaḥ

"What woman, having abandoned her husband who was to her a very god, would wish to live on, except Kaikeyi, who has forsaken righteousness?"

Shloka 6 (ayodhya.66.6)

न लुब्धो बुध्यते दोषान् किं पाकमिव भक्षयन्। कुब्जानिमित्तं कैकेय्या राघवाणां कुलं हतम्॥ २-६६-६ ॥

na lubdho budhyate doṣān kiṃ pākamiva bhakṣayan| kubjānimittaṃ kaikeyyā rāghavāṇāṃ kulaṃ hatam

"A greedy person does not perceive faults, like one eating a poisonous kimpaka fruit without knowing it; because of that hunchback, Kaikeyi has destroyed the race of Raghu."

Shloka 7 (ayodhya.66.7)

अनियोगे नियुक्तेन राज्ञा रामं विवासितम्। सभार्यं जनकः श्रुत्वा परितप्स्यत्यहं यथा॥ २-६६-७ ॥

aniyoge niyuktena rājñā rāmaṃ vivāsitam| sabhāryaṃ janakaḥ śrutvā paritapsyatyahaṃ yathā

"When Janaka hears that the king, coerced into so unworthy an act, has sent Rama into exile together with his wife, he too will grieve exactly as I do."

Shloka 8 (ayodhya.66.8)

स मामनाथां विधवां नाद्य जानाति धार्मिकः। रामः कमलपत्राक्षो जीवन्नाशमितो गतः॥ २-६६-८ ॥

sa māmanāthāṃ vidhavāṃ nādya jānāti dhārmikaḥ| rāmaḥ kamalapatrākṣo jīvannāśamito gataḥ

"That righteous Rama, lotus-petal-eyed, does not know today that I have become a helpless widow; though still living, he has gone from here as if to utter ruin."

Shloka 9 (ayodhya.66.9)

विदेहराजस्य सुता तथा सीता तपस्विनी। दुःखस्यानुचिता दुःखं वने पर्युद्विजिष्यति॥ २-६६-९ ॥

videharājasya sutā tathā sītā tapasvinī| duḥkhasyānucitā duḥkhaṃ vane paryudvijiṣyati

"So too Sita, the daughter of the king of Videha, that pitiable one who deserves no sorrow, will be seized with terror amid the grief of the forest."

Shloka 10 (ayodhya.66.10)

नदतां भीमघोषाणां निशासु मृगपक्षिणाम्। निशम्य नूनं संस्त्रस्ता राघवं संश्रयिष्यति॥ २-६६-१० ॥

nadatāṃ bhīmaghoṣāṇāṃ niśāsu mṛgapakṣiṇām| niśamya nūnaṃ saṃstrastā rāghavaṃ saṃśrayiṣyati

"Hearing, at night, the fearsome cries of wild beasts and birds calling out, she will surely be terrified and cling close to Rama for refuge."

Shloka 11 (ayodhya.66.11)

वृद्धश्चैवाल्पपुत्रश्च वैदेहीमनुचिन्तयन्। सोऽपि शोकसमाविष्टो ननु त्यक्ष्यति जीवितम्॥ २-६६-११ ॥

vṛddhaścaivālpaputraśca vaidehīmanucintayan| so'pi śokasamāviṣṭo nanu tyakṣyati jīvitam

"And he too, aged and with scarcely a son besides, thinking constantly of Vaidehi, overwhelmed by grief, will surely give up his life."

Shloka 12 (ayodhya.66.12)

साहमद्यैव दिष्टान्तं गमिष्यामि पतिव्रता। इदं शरीरमालिङ्ग्य प्रवेक्ष्यामि हुताशनम्॥ २-६६-१२ ॥

sāhamadyaiva diṣṭāntaṃ gamiṣyāmi pativratā| idaṃ śarīramāliṅgya pravekṣyāmi hutāśanam

"I too, devoted to my husband, shall this very day meet my appointed end; embracing this body, I shall enter the fire."

Shloka 13 (ayodhya.66.13)

तां ततः संपरिष्वज्य विलपन्तीं तपस्विनीम्। व्यपनिन्युः सुदुःखार्तां कौसल्यां व्यावहारिकाः॥ २-६६-१३ ॥

tāṃ tataḥ saṃpariṣvajya vilapantīṃ tapasvinīm| vyapaninyuḥ suduḥkhārtāṃ kausalyāṃ vyāvahārikāḥ

The attendants then gently drew away that grieving, sorely afflicted Kausalya, the unfortunate one, from where she lay weeping, clasped to his body.

Shloka 14 (ayodhya.66.14)

तैलद्रोण्यामथामात्याः संवेश्य जगतीपतिम्। राज्ञः सर्वाण्यथादिष्टाश्चक्रुः कर्माण्यनन्तरम्॥ २-६६-१४ ॥

tailadroṇyāmathāmātyāḥ saṃveśya jagatīpatim| rājñaḥ sarvāṇyathādiṣṭāścakruḥ karmāṇyanantaram

Then the ministers laid the lord of the earth in a trough filled with oil, and thereafter, as instructed, performed all the remaining rites for the king.

Shloka 15 (ayodhya.66.15)

न तु संकलनं राज्ञो विना पुत्रेण मन्त्रिणः। सर्वज्ञाः कर्तुमीषुस्ते ततो रक्षन्ति भूमिपम्॥ २-६६-१५ ॥

na tu saṃkalanaṃ rājño vinā putreṇa mantriṇaḥ| sarvajñāḥ kartumīṣuste tato rakṣanti bhūmipam

But the ministers, who understood all such matters, were not willing to perform the king's cremation in the absence of a son; therefore they preserved the body of that lord of the earth.

Shloka 16 (ayodhya.66.16)

तैलद्रोण्यां तु सचिवैः शायितं तं नराधिपम्। हा मृतोऽयमिति ज्ञात्वा स्त्रियस्ताः पर्यदेवयन्॥ २-६६-१६ ॥

tailadroṇyāṃ tu sacivaiḥ śāyitaṃ taṃ narādhipam| hā mṛto'yamiti jñātvā striyastāḥ paryadevayan

Seeing that lord of men laid by the ministers in the trough of oil, and knowing "Alas, he is dead," those women cried out in lamentation.

Shloka 17 (ayodhya.66.17)

बाहूनुद्यम्य कृपणा नेत्रप्रस्रवणैर्मुखैः। रुदन्त्यः शोकसंतप्ताः कृपणं पर्यदेवयन्॥ २-६६-१७ ॥

bāhūnudyamya kṛpaṇā netraprasravaṇairmukhaiḥ| rudantyaḥ śokasaṃtaptāḥ kṛpaṇaṃ paryadevayan

Lifting up their arms, their faces streaming with tears from their eyes, those wretched women, weeping and consumed by grief, lamented most pitiably.

Shloka 18 (ayodhya.66.18)

हा महाराज रामेण सततं प्रियवादिना। विहीनाः सत्यसन्धेन किमर्थं विजहासि नः॥ २-६६-१८ ॥

hā mahārāja rāmeṇa satataṃ priyavādinā| vihīnāḥ satyasandhena kimarthaṃ vijahāsi naḥ

"O great king! Already bereft of Rama, who always spoke so lovingly and held firm to his word, why do you now abandon us too?"

Shloka 19 (ayodhya.66.19)

कैकेय्या दुष्टभावाया राघवेण वियोजिताः। कथं पतिघ्न्या वत्स्यामः समीपे विधवा वयम्॥ २-६६-१९ ॥

kaikeyyā duṣṭabhāvāyā rāghaveṇa viyojitāḥ| kathaṃ patighnyā vatsyāmaḥ samīpe vidhavā vayam

"Separated from Rama by evil-hearted Kaikeyi, how shall we, now widows, go on living near her, the very slayer of our husband?"

Shloka 20 (ayodhya.66.20)

स हि नाथः सदास्माकं तव च प्रभुरात्मवान्। वनं रामो गतः श्रीमान् विहाय नृपतिश्रियम्॥ २-६६-२० ॥

sa hi nāthaḥ sadāsmākaṃ tava ca prabhurātmavān| vanaṃ rāmo gataḥ śrīmān vihāya nṛpatiśriyam

"He who was always our protector and yours too, capable and self-possessed - that glorious Rama has indeed gone to the forest, forsaking his royal fortune."

Shloka 21 (ayodhya.66.21)

त्वया तेन च वीरेण विना व्यसनमोहिताः। कथं वयं निवत्स्यामः कैकेय्या च विदूषिताः॥ २-६६-२१ ॥

tvayā tena ca vīreṇa vinā vyasanamohitāḥ| kathaṃ vayaṃ nivatsyāmaḥ kaikeyyā ca vidūṣitāḥ

"Without you and without that hero, stupefied by calamity and disgraced besides by Kaikeyi, how shall we go on living?"

Shloka 22 (ayodhya.66.22)

यया तु राजा रामश्च लक्ष्मणश्च महाबलः। सीतया सह संत्यक्ताः सा कमन्यं न हास्यति॥ २-६६-२२ ॥

yayā tu rājā rāmaśca lakṣmaṇaśca mahābalaḥ| sītayā saha saṃtyaktāḥ sā kamanyaṃ na hāsyati

"She by whom the king, and Rama, and mighty Lakshmana, together with Sita, have all been forsaken alike - whom else will she not abandon?"

Shloka 23 (ayodhya.66.23)

ता बाष्पेण च संवीताः शोकेन विपुलेन च। व्यवेष्टन्त निरानन्दा राघवस्य वरस्त्रियः॥ २-६६-२३ ॥

tā bāṣpeṇa ca saṃvītāḥ śokena vipulena ca| vyaveṣṭanta nirānandā rāghavasya varastriyaḥ

Wrapped in tears and in vast, engulfing grief, those excellent wives of Raghava's line, all joy gone from them, writhed upon the ground.

Shloka 24 (ayodhya.66.24)

निशा नक्षत्रहीनेव स्त्रीव भर्तृविवर्जिता। पुरी नाराजतायोध्या हीना राज्ञा महात्मना॥ २-६६-२४ ॥

niśā nakṣatrahīneva strīva bhartṛvivarjitā| purī nārājatāyodhyā hīnā rājñā mahātmanā

Like a night bereft of stars, like a woman abandoned by her husband, the city of Ayodhya, deprived of that great-souled king, no longer shone.

Shloka 25 (ayodhya.66.25)

बाष्पपर्याकुलजना हाहाभूतकुलाङ्गना। शून्यचत्वरवेश्मान्ता न बभ्राज यथा पुरम्॥ २-६६-२५ ॥

bāṣpaparyākulajanā hāhābhūtakulāṅganā| śūnyacatvaraveśmāntā na babhrāja yathā puram

Its people overwhelmed with tears, its noble women crying out in lament, its squares and house-fronts standing empty, that city no longer shone as it had before.

Shloka 26 (ayodhya.66.26)

गतप्रभा द्यौरिव भास्करं विना। व्यपेतनक्षत्रगणेव शर्वरी। निवृत्तचारः सहसा गतो रविः। प्रवृत्तचारा रजनी ह्युपस्थिता॥ २-६६-२६ ॥

gataprabhā dyauriva bhāskaraṃ vinā| vyapetanakṣatragaṇeva śarvarī| nivṛttacāraḥ sahasā gato raviḥ| pravṛttacārā rajanī hyupasthitā

Like the sky bereft of its brightness without the sun, like night suddenly stripped of its host of stars, the sun, its course now ceased, had abruptly departed, and night, its course now begun, had arrived.

Shloka 27 (ayodhya.66.27)

ऋते तु पुत्राद्दहनं महीपतेर्न रोचयन्ते सुहृदः समागता। इतीव तस्मिन् शयने न्यवेशयन् विचिन्त्य राजानमचिन्त्यदर्शनम्॥ २-६६-२७ ॥

ṛte tu putrāddahanaṃ mahīpaterna rocayante suhṛdaḥ samāgatā| itīva tasmin śayane nyaveśayan vicintya rājānamacintyadarśanam

"Cremating the king without his son present does not seem right to us," thinking thus, the assembled kinsmen and friends laid the king, now of unimaginable aspect, upon that resting place.

Shloka 28 (ayodhya.66.28)

गतप्रभा द्यौरिव भास्करं विना। व्यपेतनक्षत्रगणेव शर्वरी। पुरी बभासे रहिता महात्मना न चास्रकण्ठाकुलमार्गचत्वरा॥ २-६६-२८ ॥

gataprabhā dyauriva bhāskaraṃ vinā| vyapetanakṣatragaṇeva śarvarī| purī babhāse rahitā mahātmanā na cāsrakaṇṭhākulamārgacatvarā

Like the sky without its brightness, bereft of the sun, like the night suddenly stripped of its multitude of stars - the city, deprived of that great-souled king, its streets and squares thronged with people whose throats were choked with tears, did not shine.

Shloka 29 (ayodhya.66.29)

नराश्च नार्यश्च समेत्य संघशः। विगर्हमाणा भरतस्य मातरम्। तदा नगर्यां नरदेवसंक्षये बभूवुरार्ता न च शर्म लेभिरे॥ २-६६-२९ ॥

narāśca nāryaśca sametya saṃghaśaḥ| vigarhamāṇā bharatasya mātaram| tadā nagaryāṃ naradevasaṃkṣaye babhūvurārtā na ca śarma lebhire

Then, at the passing of the lord of men, the men and women of the city, gathering together in groups, reviled Bharata's mother; they were all thrown into distress and found no peace anywhere.