Bharata's Rebuke of Kaikeyi

Shloka 1 (ayodhya.73.1)

श्रुत्वा तु पितरं वृत्तं भ्रातरौ च विवासितौ। भरतो दुःखसंतप्त इदं वचनमब्रवीत्॥ 73.1 ॥

śrutvā tu pitaraṃ vṛttaṃ bhrātarau ca vivāsitau| bharato duḥkhasaṃtapta idaṃ vacanam abravīt

Hearing that his father was dead and that both his brothers had been exiled, Bharata, burning with grief, spoke these words.

Shloka 2 (ayodhya.73.2)

किं नु कार्यं हतस्येह मम राज्येन शोचतः। विहीनस्याथ पित्रा च भ्रात्रा पितृसमेन च॥ 73.2 ॥

kiṃ nu kāryaṃ hatasyeha mama rājyena śocataḥ| vihīnasyātha pitrā ca bhrātrā pitṛsamena ca

"What use now is a kingdom to me — struck down, grieving, bereft of my father and of a brother who was to me as a father?

Shloka 3 (ayodhya.73.3)

दुःखे मे दुःखमकरोर्व्रणे क्षारमिवादधाः। राजानं प्रेतभावस्थं कृत्वा रामं च तापसम्॥ 73.3 ॥

duḥkhe me duḥkham akaror vraṇe kṣāram ivādadhāḥ| rājānaṃ pretabhāvasthaṃ kṛtvā rāmaṃ ca tāpasam

By sending the king to the realm of the dead and turning Rama into an ascetic, you have heaped sorrow upon sorrow on me — like rubbing salt into a wound.

Shloka 4 (ayodhya.73.4)

कुलस्य त्वमभावाय कालरात्रिरिवागता। अङ्गारमुपगूह्य स्म पिता मे नावबुद्धवान्॥ 73.4 ॥

kulasya tvam abhāvāya kālarātrir ivāgatā| aṅgāram upagūhya sma pitā me nāvabuddhavān

You have come like the night of universal dissolution, for the ruin of our line. My father never knew that he was embracing a burning coal to his heart.

Shloka 5 (ayodhya.73.5)

मृत्युमापादितो राजा त्वया मे पापदर्शिनि। सुखं परिहृतं मोहात्कुलेऽस्मिन् कुलपांसनि॥ 73.5 ॥

mṛtyum āpādito rājā tvayā me pāpadarśini| sukhaṃ parihṛtaṃ mohāt kule'smin kulapāṃsani

O woman of evil vision, it is you who drove my father to his death. O disgrace of our family, through your delusion happiness has fled forever from this house.

Shloka 6 (ayodhya.73.6)

त्वां प्राप्य हि पिता मेऽद्य सत्यसन्धो महायशाः। तीव्रदुःखाभिसंतप्तो वृत्तो दशरथो नृपः॥ 73.6 ॥

tvāṃ prāpya hi pitā me'dya satyasandho mahāyaśāḥ| tīvraduḥkhābhisaṃtapto vṛtto daśaratho nṛpaḥ

Because he had you, my truthful and greatly renowned father, King Dasharatha, has today died, consumed by unbearable grief.

Shloka 7 (ayodhya.73.7)

विनाशितो महाराजः पिता मे धर्मवत्सलः। कस्मात्प्रव्राजितो रामः कस्मादेव वनं गतः॥ 73.7 ॥

vināśito mahārājaḥ pitā me dharmavatsalaḥ| kasmāt pravrājito rāmaḥ kasmād eva vanaṃ gataḥ

My father, the great king who so cherished righteousness, has been destroyed. For what reason was Rama exiled — for what reason has he gone to the forest?

Shloka 8 (ayodhya.73.8)

कौसल्या च सुमित्रा च पुत्रशोकाभिपीडिते। दुष्करं यदि जीवेतां प्राप्य त्वां जननीं मम॥ 73.8 ॥

kausalyā ca sumitrā ca putraśokābhipīḍite| duṣkaraṃ yadi jīvetāṃ prāpya tvāṃ jananīṃ mama

It would be a wonder if Kausalya and Sumitra, tormented by grief for their sons, can go on living at all, with you as their fellow mother.

Shloka 9 (ayodhya.73.9)

ननु त्वार्योऽपि धर्मात्मा त्वयि वृत्तिमनुत्तमाम्। वर्तते गुरुवृत्तिज्ञो यथा मातरि वर्तते॥ 73.9 ॥

nanu tv āryo'pi dharmātmā tvayi vṛttim anuttamām| vartate guruvṛttijño yathā mātari vartate

Did not my noble, righteous brother — who knows well how to honor his elders — always conduct himself toward you with the same supreme devotion he showed his own mother?

Shloka 10 (ayodhya.73.10)

तथा ज्येष्ठा हि मे माता कौसल्या दीर्घदर्शिनी। त्वयि धर्मं समास्थाय भगिन्यामिव वर्तते॥ 73.10 ॥

tathā jyeṣṭhā hi me mātā kausalyā dīrghadarśinī| tvayi dharmaṃ samāsthāya bhaginyām iva vartate

Likewise my far-sighted elder mother Kausalya, holding fast to righteousness, has always treated you as though you were her own sister.

Shloka 11 (ayodhya.73.11)

तस्याः पुत्रं कृतात्मानं चीरवल्कलवाससम्। प्रस्थाप्य वनवासाय कथं पापे न शोचसि॥ 73.11 ॥

tasyāḥ putraṃ kṛtātmānaṃ cīravalkalavāsasam| prasthāpya vanavāsāya kathaṃ pāpe na śocasi

Having sent her self-controlled son off to the forest, dressed in bark and rags, how is it, O sinful one, that you feel no remorse?

Shloka 12 (ayodhya.73.12)

अपापदर्शिनं शूरं कृतात्मानं यशस्विनम्। प्रव्राज्य चीरवसनं किं नु पश्यसि कारणम्॥ 73.12 ॥

apāpadarśinaṃ śūraṃ kṛtātmānaṃ yaśasvinam| pravrājya cīravasanaṃ kiṃ nu paśyasi kāraṇam

What reason did you find for banishing him — a man who sees no evil in anyone, valiant, self-mastered, and renowned — clad in bark like a hermit?

Shloka 13 (ayodhya.73.13)

लुब्धाया विदितो मन्ये न तेऽहं राघवं प्रति। तथा ह्यनर्थो राज्यार्थं त्वया नीतो महानयम्॥ 73.13 ॥

lubdhāyā vidito manye na te'haṃ rāghavaṃ prati| tathā hy anartho rājyārthaṃ tvayā nīto mahān ayam

I think, O greedy woman, that you never understood my devotion to Raghava — for otherwise, for the sake of a kingdom, you would not have brought about so great a disaster.

Shloka 14 (ayodhya.73.14)

अहं हि पुरुषव्याघ्रावपश्यन् रामलक्ष्मणौ। केन शक्तिप्रभावेन राज्यं रक्षितुमुत्सहे॥ 73.14 ॥

ahaṃ hi puruṣavyāghrāv apaśyan rāmalakṣmaṇau| kena śaktiprabhāveṇa rājyaṃ rakṣitum utsahe

Without ever seeing those two tigers among men, Rama and Lakshmana, by what strength could I ever hope to protect this kingdom?

Shloka 15 (ayodhya.73.15)

तं हि नित्यं महाराजो बलवन्तं महाबलः। उपाश्रितोऽभूद्धर्मात्मा मेरुर्मेरुवनं यथा॥ 73.15 ॥

taṃ hi nityaṃ mahārājo balavantaṃ mahābalaḥ| upāśrito'bhūd dharmātmā merur meruvanaṃ yathā

That mighty, righteous king always leaned upon strong Rama for support, just as Mount Meru leans upon the forest that surrounds it.

Shloka 16 (ayodhya.73.16)

सोऽहं कथमिमं भारं महाधुर्यसमुद्यतम्। दम्यो धुरमिवासाद्य सहेयं केन चौजसा॥ 73.16 ॥

so'haṃ katham imaṃ bhāraṃ mahādhuryasamudyatam| damyo dhuram ivāsādya saheyaṃ kena caujasā

How, then, could I bear this burden meant for a mighty draft-ox, with what strength — like an untamed young bullock forced to take up a heavy yoke?

Shloka 17 (ayodhya.73.17)

अथवा मे भवेच्छक्तिर्योगैर्बुद्धिबलेन वा। सकामां न करिष्यामि त्वामहं पुत्रगर्धिनीम्॥ 73.17 ॥

athavā me bhavec chaktir yogair buddhibalena vā| sakāmāṃ na kariṣyāmi tvām ahaṃ putragardhinīm

Or even if, by some effort or by strength of mind, that capacity should come to me, still I will never let you, greedy for your son's sake, have your desire fulfilled.

Shloka 18 (ayodhya.73.18)

न मे विकाङ्क्षा जायेत त्यक्तुं त्वां पापनिश्चयाम्। यदि रामस्य नावेक्षा त्वयि स्यान्मातृवत्सदा॥ 73.18 ॥

na me vikāṅkṣā jāyeta tyaktuṃ tvāṃ pāpaniścayām| yadi rāmasya nāvekṣā tvayi syān mātṛvat sadā

I would feel no hesitation at all in casting you off, you of such wicked resolve, were it not that Rama has always looked upon you as a mother.

Shloka 19 (ayodhya.73.19)

उत्पन्ना तु कथं बुद्धिस्तवेयं पापदर्शिनि। साधुचारित्रविभ्रष्टे पूर्वेषां नो विगर्हिता॥ 73.19 ॥

utpannā tu kathaṃ buddhis taveyaṃ pāpadarśini| sādhucāritravibhraṣṭe pūrveṣāṃ no vigarhitā

O woman of wicked vision, fallen from all decent conduct — how did this thought, condemned by our ancestors, ever arise in your mind?

Shloka 20 (ayodhya.73.20)

अस्मिन्कुले हि सर्वेषां ज्येष्ठो राज्येऽभिषिच्यते। अपरे भ्रातरस्तस्मिन् प्रवर्तन्ते समाहिताः॥ 73.20 ॥

asmin kule hi sarveṣāṃ jyeṣṭho rājye'bhiṣicyate| apare bhrātaras tasmin pravartante samāhitāḥ

In this family it is always the eldest of all who is consecrated to the kingdom, while the other brothers devote themselves, with full reverence, to him.

Shloka 21 (ayodhya.73.21)

न हि मन्ये नृशंसे त्वं राजधर्ममवेक्षसे। गतिं वा न विजानासि राजवृत्तस्य शाश्वतीम्॥ 73.21 ॥

na hi manye nṛśaṃse tvaṃ rājadharmam avekṣase| gatiṃ vā na vijānāsi rājavṛttasya śāśvatīm

I do not think, O cruel woman, that you have any regard for the law of kings, nor do you understand the eternal custom that governs royal succession.

Shloka 22 (ayodhya.73.22)

सततं राजवृत्ते हि ज्येष्ठो राज्येऽभिषिच्यते। राज्ञामेतत्समं तत्स्यादिक्ष्वाकूणां विशेषतः॥ 73.22 ॥

satataṃ rājavṛtte hi jyeṣṭho rājye'bhiṣicyate| rājñām etat samaṃ tat syād ikṣvākūṇāṃ viśeṣataḥ

In the custom of kings, it is always the eldest who is anointed to the throne. This holds true for all royal houses, and most especially for the Ikshvakus.

Shloka 23 (ayodhya.73.23)

तेषां धर्मैकरक्षाणां कुलचारित्रयोगिनाम्। अत्र चारित्रशौण्डीर्यं त्वां प्राप्य विनिवर्तितम्॥ 73.23 ॥

teṣāṃ dharmaikarakṣāṇāṃ kulacāritrayoginām| atra cāritraśauṇḍīryaṃ tvāṃ prāpya vinivartitam

The proud tradition of good conduct upheld by those ancestors — protectors of righteousness alone, keepers of family honor — has, because of you, been turned back and broken here.

Shloka 24 (ayodhya.73.24)

तवापि सुमहाभागा जनेन्द्राः कुलपूर्वगाः। बुद्धेर्मोहः कथमयं संभूतस्त्वयि गर्हितः॥ 73.24 ॥

tavāpi sumahābhāgā janendrāḥ kulapūrvagāḥ| buddher mohaḥ katham ayaṃ saṃbhūtas tvayi garhitaḥ

Even the kings of your own ancestral line were men of the greatest distinction. How, then, did this contemptible confusion of mind ever take root in you?

Shloka 25 (ayodhya.73.25)

न तु कामं करिष्यामि तवाहं पापनिश्चये। त्वया व्यसनमारब्धं जीवितान्तकरं मम॥ 73.25 ॥

na tu kāmaṃ kariṣyāmi tavāhaṃ pāpaniścaye| tvayā vyasanam ārabdhaṃ jīvitāntakaraṃ mama

I will never fulfil your desire, O woman fixed on sin. It is you who has set in motion this calamity, one that could well bring my own life to its end.

Shloka 26 (ayodhya.73.26)

एष त्विदानीमेवाहं तवाप्रियार्थम्। निवर्तयिष्यामि वनाद्भ्रातरमनघं स्वजनप्रियम्॥ 73.26 ॥

eṣa tv idānīm evāhaṃ tavāpriyārtham| nivartayiṣyāmi vanād bhrātaram anaghaṃ svajanapriyam

This very moment, to your displeasure, I shall bring back from the forest my blameless brother, so beloved of his own people.

Shloka 27 (ayodhya.73.27)

निवर्तयित्वा रामं च तस्याहं दीप्ततेजसः। दासभूतो भविष्यामि सुस्थिरेणान्तरात्मना॥ 73.27 ॥

nivartayitvā rāmaṃ ca tasyāhaṃ dīptatejasaḥ| dāsabhūto bhaviṣyāmi susthireṇāntarātmanā

Having brought Rama back, I shall become, with a firm and settled heart, the servant of that radiant one.

Shloka 28 (ayodhya.73.28)

इत्येवमुक्त्वा भरतो महात्मा प्रियेतरैर्वाक्यगणैस्तुदंस्ताम्। शोकातुरश्चापि ननाद भूयः सिंहो यथा पर्वतगह्वरस्थः॥ 73.28 ॥

ity evam uktvā bharato mahātmā priyetarair vākyagaṇais tudaṃs tām| śokāturaś cāpi nanāda bhūyaḥ siṃho yathā parvatagahvarasthaḥ

Having spoken thus, the noble Bharata, piercing her with this stream of harsh words, roared out once more in his anguish, like a lion crouched within a mountain cave.