Ayodhya Kanda · Sarga 36 of 119 · 33 verses
An Empty Kingdom; the Story of Asamanja
Tormented by his promise, the king sighs and tells Sumantra: “Let a fourfold army full of treasure be prepared quickly to accompany Raghava. Let courtesans, musicians and rich merchants adorn the prince’s train. Give generously to his dependants and companions and send them too. Let the best weapons, townsmen, carts and hunters skilled in the forest follow Kakutstha. Hunting deer and elephants, drinking wild honey and seeing many rivers, he will not remember the kingdom. Let my granary and treasury follow Rama in the lonely forest. Sacrificing in holy places, giving rich fees and meeting sages, he will live happily. Mighty Bharata will protect Ayodhya; let glorious Rama be provided with every comfort.”
At this, fear seizes Kaikeyi; her mouth goes dry and her voice chokes. Dejected and frightened, she says to the king: “Bharata will not accept a kingdom stripped of its wealth, empty and tasteless, like wine whose essence has been drunk.” The king replies: “Why do you goad me, ignoble woman, when you have yoked me to the burden? Why did you not stop it at the start?” Twice as angry, Kaikeyi says: “In your own line Sagara banished his eldest son Asamanja; so this one should go too.” The king cries “Shame!”, everyone is ashamed, and she does not see it.
An old, honest minister named Siddhartha, respected by the king, speaks to Kaikeyi: “Asamanja seized children playing in the road and threw them into the Sarayu, delighting in it. The citizens, furious, told the king: ‘Choose Asamanja alone, or us.’ Asked why, they said: ‘He throws our little children into the Sarayu out of folly and takes great pleasure in it.’ To please his people the king abandoned that harmful son, put him in a carriage with his wife and belongings, and banished him for life; he wandered the mountains with a ploughshare and basket, as an evildoer does. That is why righteous Sagara banished him. What wrong has Rama done to be treated like this? We see no fault in Raghava; a stain on him is as rare as on the moon. Or, if you see some fault in him, tell it truly now, and then let Rama be banished. Abandoning one who is innocent and devoted to the good path, being against dharma, would burn up even Indra’s splendour. Enough of destroying Rama’s fortune, queen; guard yourself from the world’s blame.” The king, his voice worn, says: “You do not want these words, wicked one; you do not know what is good for me or for yourself. I will follow Rama today, giving up kingdom, comfort and wealth; you, with Bharata, enjoy the kingdom as you please for a long time.”
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ततः सुमन्त्रमैक्ष्वाकः पीडितोऽत्र प्रतिज्ञया । सबाष्पमतिनिःश्वस्य जगादेदं पुनर्वचः ॥ १ ॥
Then the Ikshvaku king, tormented here by his promise, sighing deeply with tears, spoke these words again to Sumantra:
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An Empty Kingdom; the Story of Asamanja 1 min read.
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सूत रत्नसुसम्पूर्णा चतुर्विधबला चमूः । राघवस्यानुयात्रार्थं क्षिप्रं प्रतिविधीयताम् ॥ २ ॥
“Charioteer, let an army full of treasure, with its four divisions, be quickly prepared to accompany Raghava.
रूपाजीवाश्च वादिन्यो वणिजश्च महाधनाः । शोभयन्तु कुमारस्य वाहिनीः सुप्रसारिताः ॥ ३ ॥
“Let courtesans, women who speak well and very wealthy merchants adorn the prince’s well-spread forces.
ये चैनमुपजीवन्ति रमते यैश्च वीर्यतः । तेषां बहुविधं दत्त्वा तानप्यत्र नियोजय ॥ ४ ॥
“Those who depend on him, and those with whom he delights for their valour: give them many kinds of gifts and appoint them to this too.
आयुधानि च मुख्यानि नागराः शकटानि च । अनुगच्छन्तु काकुत्स्थं व्याधाश्चारण्यकोविदाः ॥ ५ ॥
“Let the best weapons, townsmen and carts follow Kakutstha, and hunters who know the forest.
निघ्नन् मृगान् कुञ्जरांश्च पिबंश्चारण्यकं मधु । नदीश्च विविधाः पश्यन् न राज्यं संस्मरिष्यति ॥ ६ ॥
“Killing deer and elephants, drinking forest honey, seeing many rivers, he will not remember the kingdom.
धान्यकोशश्च यः कश्चिद् धनकोशश्च मामकः । तौ राममनुगच्छेतां वसन्तं निर्जने वने ॥ ७ ॥
“Whatever granary and treasury of mine there is, let them both follow Rama living in the lonely forest.
यजन् पुण्येषु देशेषु विसृजंश्चाप्तदक्षिणाः । ऋषिभिश्चापि संगम्य प्रवत्स्यति सुखं वने ॥ ८ ॥
“Sacrificing in holy places, giving fitting fees, and meeting the sages, he will live happily in the forest.
भरतश्च महाबाहुरयोध्यां पालयिष्यति । सर्वकामैः पुनः श्रीमान् रामः संसाध्यतामिति ॥ ९ ॥
“Mighty-armed Bharata will protect Ayodhya; and let glorious Rama be provided with every comfort.”
एवं ब्रुवति काकुत्स्थे कैकेय्या भयमागतम् । मुखं चाप्यगमच्छोषं स्वरश्चापि व्यरुध्यत ॥ १० ॥
As Kakutstha spoke so, fear came upon Kaikeyi; her mouth went dry and her voice was choked.
सा विषण्णा च संत्रस्ता मुखेन परिशुष्यता । राजानमेवाभिमुखी कैकेयी वाक्यमब्रवीत् ॥ ११ ॥
Dejected and frightened, her mouth drying up, Kaikeyi, facing the king, said:
राज्यं गतधनं साधो पीतमण्डां सुरामिव । निरास्वाद्यतमं शून्यं भरतो नाभिपत्स्यते ॥ १२ ॥
“Good man, Bharata will not accept a kingdom stripped of wealth, empty, utterly without taste, like wine whose essence has been drunk.”
कैकेय्यां मुक्तलज्जायां वदन्त्यामतिदारुणम् । राजा दशरथो वाक्यमुवाचायतलोचनाम् ॥ १३ ॥
When Kaikeyi, her shame thrown off, said this most cruel thing, King Dasharatha said to the large-eyed woman:
वहन्तं किं तुदसि मां नियुज्य धुरि माहिते । अनार्ये कृत्यमारब्धं किं न पूर्वमुपारुधः ॥ १४ ॥
“Why do you goad me as I carry the load, having yoked me to the pole, ignoble woman? Why did you not stop it when the deed was first begun?”
तस्यैतत् क्रोधसंयुक्तमुक्तं श्रुत्वा वराङ्गना । कैकेयी द्विगुणं क्रुद्धा राजानमिदमब्रवीत् ॥ १५ ॥
Hearing these angry words of his, the beautiful Kaikeyi, twice as angry, said to the king:
तवैव वंशे सगरो ज्येष्ठपुत्रमुपारुधत् । असमञ्ज इति ख्यातं तथायं गन्तुमर्हति ॥ १६ ॥
“In your own line Sagara banished his eldest son, known as Asamanja; so this one too should go.”
एवमुक्तो धिगित्येव राजा दशरथोऽब्रवीत् । व्रीडितश्च जनः सर्वः सा च तन्नावबुध्यत ॥ १७ ॥
So addressed, King Dasharatha said only “Shame!”, and all the people were ashamed; but she did not perceive it.
तत्र वृद्धो महामात्रः सिद्धार्थो नाम नामतः । शुचिर्बहुमतो राज्ञः कैकेयीमिदमब्रवीत् ॥ १८ ॥
There an old chief minister named Siddhartha, pure and highly esteemed by the king, said to Kaikeyi:
असमञ्जो गृहीत्वा तु क्रीडतः पथि दारकान् । सरय्वां प्रक्षिपन्नप्सु रमते तेन दुर्मतिः ॥ १९ ॥
“Asamanja used to seize children playing in the road and throw them into the waters of the Sarayu; the wicked one delighted in that.
तं दृष्ट्वा नागराः सर्वे क्रुद्धा राजानमब्रुवन् । असमञ्जं वृणीष्वैकमस्मान् वा राष्ट्रवर्धन ॥ २० ॥
“Seeing him, all the citizens, angry, said to the king: ‘Choose Asamanja alone, or us, increaser of the kingdom.’
तानुवाच ततो राजा किंनिमित्तमिदं भयम् । ताश्चापि राज्ञा सम्पृष्टा वाक्यं प्रकृतयोऽब्रुवन् ॥ २१ ॥
“Then the king said to them: ‘What is the cause of this fear?’ And the people, asked by the king, said:
क्रीडतस्त्वेष नः पुत्रान् बालानुद्भ्रान्तचेतसः । सरय्वां प्रक्षिपन्मौर्ख्यादतुलां प्रीतिमश्नुते ॥ २२ ॥
“’In his folly, with a deranged mind, he throws our little sons, while they play, into the Sarayu, and gets matchless pleasure from it.’
स तासां वचनं श्रुत्वा प्रकृतीनां नराधिपः । तं तत्याजाहितं पुत्रं तासां प्रियचिकीर्षया ॥ २३ ॥
“Hearing the words of the people, the lord of men abandoned that harmful son, wishing to please them.
तं यानं शीघ्रमारोप्य सभार्यं सपरिच्छदम् । यावज्जीवं विवास्योऽयमिति तानन्वशात् पिता ॥ २४ ॥
“Putting him quickly in a carriage with his wife and belongings, his father ordered them: ‘This one is to be banished for life.’
स फालपिटकं गृह्य गिरिदुर्गाण्यलोकयत् । दिशः सर्वास्त्वनुचरन् स यथा पापकर्मकृत् ॥ २५ ॥
“Taking a ploughshare and basket, he roamed the mountain fastnesses, wandering all directions, as an evildoer does.
इत्येनमत्यजद् राजा सगरो वै सुधार्मिकः । रामः किमकरोत् पापं येनैवमुपरुध्यते ॥ २६ ॥
“So the most righteous King Sagara abandoned him. What wrong has Rama done, that he is obstructed like this?
नहि कंचन पश्यामो राघवस्यागुणं वयम् । दुर्लभो ह्यस्य निरयः शशाङ्कस्येव कल्मषम् ॥ २७ ॥
“We see no fault at all in Raghava; a hell for him is as hard to find as a stain on the moon.
अथवा देवि त्वं कंचिद् दोषं पश्यसि राघवे । तमद्य ब्रूहि तत्त्वेन तदा रामो विवास्यते ॥ २८ ॥
“Or if you, queen, see some fault in Raghava, tell it truly today; then let Rama be banished.
अदुष्टस्य हि संत्यागः सत्पथे निरतस्य च । निर्दहेदपि शक्रस्य द्युतिं धर्मविरोधवान् ॥ २९ ॥
“For the abandonment of one who is innocent and devoted to the good path, being opposed to dharma, would burn up even the splendour of Shakra.
तदलं देवि रामस्य श्रिया विहतया त्वया । लोकतोऽपि हि ते रक्ष्यः परिवादः शुभानने ॥ ३० ॥
“So enough, queen, of ruining Rama’s fortune. You must guard yourself against the world’s blame, lovely-faced one.”
श्रुत्वा तु सिद्धार्थवचो राजा श्रान्ततरस्वरः । शोकोपहतया वाचा कैकेयीमिदमब्रवीत् ॥ ३१ ॥
Hearing Siddhartha’s words, the king, his voice more weary, said to Kaikeyi in a voice struck with grief:
एतद्वचो नेच्छसि पापरूपे हितं न जानासि ममात्मनोऽथवा । आस्थाय मार्गं कृपणं कुचेष्टा चेष्टा हि ते साधुपथादपेता ॥ ३२ ॥
“You do not want these words, wicked one; you do not know what is good for me or for yourself. Taking a wretched path, your conduct is evil and has strayed from the good way.
अनुव्रजिष्याम्यहमद्य रामं राज्यं परित्यज्य सुखं धनं च । सर्वे च राज्ञा भरतेन च त्वं यथासुखं भुङ्क्ष्व चिराय राज्यम् ॥ ३३ ॥
“I will follow Rama today, abandoning kingdom, comfort and wealth. Let all of them, with King Bharata, and you, enjoy the kingdom as you please for a long time.”