Ayodhya Kanda · Sarga 85 of 119 · 22 verses
The Mountain of Sorrow
Hearing this, the very wise Bharata answers Guha, lord of the Nishadas, with reasoned words: “Friend of my elder brother, your wish is generous indeed, since you alone want to honour so great an army.” Then the splendid one speaks again: “By which way shall I go to Bharadvaja’s hermitage, Guha? This country is very dense, and the Ganga’s marshy banks are hard to cross.” Hearing the wise prince, Guha, who knows the thickets, joins his palms and says: “My fishermen will follow you, armed with bows and fully alert, and I too will go with you, glorious prince. But I hope you are not going with ill intent toward Rama of unwearied deeds? This great army of yours seems to raise doubts in me.” Bharata, clear as the sky, answers gently: “May that dreadful time never come! You should not suspect me. Raghava is my brother, my eldest, like a father to me. I am going to bring Kakutstha back from his life in the forest. Have no other thought, Guha; I tell you the truth.” His face bright with joy, Guha says again: “You are blessed; I see no one equal to you on the earth, since you wish to give up a kingdom that came to you without effort. Your eternal fame will travel through the worlds, since you wish to bring back Rama who has fallen into hardship.”
As Guha speaks, the sun loses its light and night comes on. Having camped the army, satisfied by Guha, glorious Bharata returns to his bed with Shatrughna. Grief, full of thoughts of Rama, comes over great-souled Bharata, who looks to dharma and does not deserve it. The fire inside him burns Raghava, as a hidden fire burns a tree scorched by a forest fire. Sweat born of the fire of grief pours from all his limbs, as snow melts from the Himalaya heated by the sun’s rays. He is overwhelmed by a great mountain of sorrow: its rocks his brooding, its minerals his sighs, its trees his misery, its peaks his grief and weariness, its countless creatures his bewilderment, its herbs and bamboos his anguish. Sighing, deeply troubled, his mind confused, in extreme distress, tormented by fever of the heart, the bull among men finds no peace, like a bull driven from its herd. Then Guha, with his people, joins great-souled Bharata, composed, and comforts him again about his elder brother.
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एवमुक्तस्तु भरतो निषादाधिपतिं गुहम् । प्रत्युवाच महाप्राज्ञो वाक्यं हेत्वर्थसंहितम् ॥ १ ॥
Spoken to so, the very wise Bharata answered Guha, lord of the Nishadas, with words full of reason and purpose:
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ऊर्जितः खलु ते कामः कृतो मम गुरोः सखे । यो मे त्वमीदृशीं सेनामेको अभ्यर्चितुमिच्छसि ॥ २ ॥
“Your wish is generous indeed, friend of my elder, since you alone wish to honour such an army as mine.”
इत्युक्त्वा तु महातेजा गुहं वचनमुत्तमम् । अब्रवीद्भरतः श्रीमान्निषादाधिपतिं पुनः ॥ ३ ॥
Having said these excellent words to Guha, the splendid, glorious Bharata spoke again to the lord of the Nishadas:
कतरेण गमिष्यामि भरद्वाजाश्रमं गुह । गहनोऽयं भृशं देशो गङ्गानूपो दुरत्ययः ॥ ४ ॥
“By which way shall I go to Bharadvaja’s hermitage, Guha? This country is very dense, and the Ganga’s marshes are hard to cross.”
तस्य तद्वचनं श्रुत्वा राजपुत्रस्य धीमतः । अब्रवीत् प्राञ्जलिर्वाक्यं गुहो गहनगोचरः ॥ ५ ॥
Hearing those words of the wise prince, Guha, who moved in the thickets, said with joined palms:
दाशास्त्वनुगमिष्यन्ति धन्विनः सुसमाहिताः । अहं चानुगमिष्यामि राजपुत्र महायशः ॥ ६ ॥
“The fishermen will follow you, armed with bows and very alert; and I too will follow you, greatly glorious prince.
कच्चिन्न दुष्टो व्रजसि रामस्याक्लिष्टकर्मणः । इयं ते महती सेना शङ्कां जनयतीव मे ॥ ७ ॥
“But I hope you are not going with ill will toward Rama of unwearied deeds? This great army of yours seems to raise a doubt in me.”
तमेवमभिभाषन्तमाकाश इव निर्मलः । भरतः श्लक्ष्णया वाचा गुहं वचनमब्रवीत् ॥ ८ ॥
To him speaking so, Bharata, clear as the sky, said these words to Guha in a gentle voice:
मा भूत्स कालो यत्कष्टं न मां शङ्कितुमर्हसि । राघवः स हि मे भ्राता ज्येष्ठः पितृसमो मतः ॥ ९ ॥
“May that time never come which would be so painful! You should not suspect me. For Raghava is my brother, my eldest, like a father to me.
तं निवर्तयितुं यामि काकुत्स्थं वनवासिनम् । बुद्धिरन्या न ते कार्या गुह सत्यं ब्रवीमि ते ॥ १० ॥
“I am going to bring back Kakutstha, who lives in the forest. You should form no other thought, Guha; I tell you the truth.”
स तु संहृष्टवदनः श्रुत्वा भरतभाषितम् । पुनरेवाब्रवीद् वाक्यं भरतं प्रति हर्षितः ॥ ११ ॥
Hearing what Bharata said, his face delighted, he spoke again to Bharata, joyfully:
धन्यस्त्वं न त्वया तुल्यं पश्यामि जगतीतले । अयत्नादागतं राज्यं यस्त्वं त्यक्तुमिहेच्छसि ॥ १२ ॥
“You are blessed; I see no one equal to you on the face of the earth, since you wish to give up here a kingdom that came to you without effort.
शाश्वती खलु ते कीर्तिर्लोकाननुचरिष्यति । यस्त्वं कृच्च्रगतं रामं प्रत्यानयितुमिच्छसि ॥ १३ ॥
“Your eternal fame will surely travel through the worlds, since you wish to bring back Rama, who has fallen into hardship.”
एवं सम्भाषमाणस्य गुहस्य भरतं तदा । बभौ नष्टप्रभः सूर्यो रजनी चाभ्यवर्तत ॥ १४ ॥
As Guha was speaking so to Bharata, the sun shone with its light lost, and night came on.
संनिवेश्य स तां सेनां गुहेन परितोषितः । शत्रुघ्नेन सह श्रीमाञ्शयनं पुनरागमत् ॥ १५ ॥
Having camped that army, satisfied by Guha, glorious Bharata went back to his bed with Shatrughna.
रामचिन्तामयः शोको भरतस्य महात्मनः । उपस्थितो ह्यनर्हस्य धर्मप्रेक्षस्य तादृशः ॥ १६ ॥
Grief made of thoughts of Rama came over great-souled Bharata, who looked to dharma and did not deserve such a thing.
अन्तर्दाहेन दहनः संतापयति राघवम् । वनदाहाभिसंतप्तं गूढोऽग्निरिव पादपम् ॥ १७ ॥
The burning within scorched Raghava, as a hidden fire scorches a tree heated by a forest fire.
प्रसृतः सर्वगात्रेभ्यः स्वेदं शोकाग्निसम्भवम् । यथा सूर्यांशुसंतप्तो हिमवान्प्रसृतो हिमम् ॥ १८ ॥
Sweat born of the fire of grief poured from all his limbs, as the Himalaya, heated by the sun’s rays, pours out its snow.
ध्याननिर्दरशैलेन विनिःश्वसितधातुना । दैन्यपादपसंघेन शोकायासाधिशृङ्गिणा ॥ १९ ॥
प्रमोहानन्तसत्त्वेन संतापौषधिवेणुना । आक्रान्तो दुःखशैलेन महता कैकयीसुतः ॥ २० ॥
With rocks of brooding, with minerals of sighs, with a host of trees of misery, with high peaks of grief and weariness, with endless creatures of bewilderment, with herbs and bamboos of anguish, Kaikeyi’s son was overwhelmed by a great mountain of sorrow.
विनिश्श्वसन्वै भृशदुर्मनास्ततः प्रमूढसंज्ञः परमापदं गतः । शमं न लेभे हृदयज्वरार्दितो नरर्षभो यूथहतो यथर्षभः ॥ २१ ॥
Sighing, deeply troubled, his senses confused, fallen into extreme distress, tormented by a fever of the heart, the bull among men found no peace, like a bull struck from its herd.
गुहेन सार्धं भरतः समागतो महानुभावः सजनः समाहितः । सुदुर्मनास्तं भरतं तदा पुनर्गुहः समाश्वासयदग्रजं प्रति ॥ २२ ॥
Then Guha, with his people, joined great-souled Bharata, composed; and Guha comforted that deeply troubled Bharata again about his elder brother.