Bharata

Bharata spent his long time in Nandigram, the adjacent land near Ayodhya and the spiritual soul of his kingdom. Even though Ayodhya was his priority, he felt attached to Nandigram. He excelled in his duties as administrator, gathering treasure, and being the eagle of Ayodhya. Everyone praised his name along with his Ram Bhaiyya as he always followed the lessons he absorbed through his eyes from Lord Rama.

Dasharatha was blessed with three wives who each had four sons. The so-called unity among the queens dispersed in the crooked storm of Manthara, the royal advisor of Bharata’s mother kaikeyi. Bharata was appalled to learn that the boon she requested form King Dasharatha was a fourteen-years’ exile of Rama during his administrative service in kaikeya outside Ayodhya. Bharata rebuked his mother for sending Rama to the forest and being selfish in making Bharata the king, when kaikeyi failed to comprehend his son’s true dedication to his brotherhood. Bharata’s pain and ignorance made her realize the boon became a serpent of curse over Bharata and the relation between the mother and son.

Bharata, seeing Rama as his ideal person, along with all royal symbols, visited Rama. He begged and sacrificed his body by fasting for Rama’s return to Ayodhya. He places a lot of emphasis on Rama’s significance in Ayodhya, but Rama was obligated to follow his father’s words. Bharata says, ‘I will burn my body to death even if the fourteen years of exile extended to one day’. Bharata’s unconditional passion towards Rama urges him to return to Ayodhya. Bharata carried Rama’s sandals over his head and placed them on the throne of Ayodhya, showing his plainness in his duties.

Bharat’s goal was unchanging; he only saw his Ram Bhaiyya as the ruler of Ayodhya. From Nandigram, he was tasked with being a formidable eagle of Ayodhya. His survival in Nandigram shows his least interest in royal life without his brothers Rama and Lakshmana. Furthermore, his protest against Kaikeyi’s decision exacerbated her son’s suffering.

Bharata is a vital character in the Ramayana. He was the most awaited person for Rama’s return. In the Vakmayi Ramayana, he represents purity, dedication, simplicity, and sacrifice. The ideal depiction of brotherhood.