by Tulsidas
The Lord knew that Kaikeyi was ashamed,
So he went first to her palace, Bhavani.
There Hari reassured and comforted her,
And then proceeded to his own abode.
When the ocean of mercy entered his palace,
All the men and women of the city grew glad.
Guru Vasishtha summoned all the Brahmans, and said,
‘The day, the hour and all else is auspicious today,
So, all you Brahmans rejoice and give instruction
That Ramchandra takes his seat upon the throne.’
Upon hearing Muni Vasishtha’s pleasing words,
All the gathered Brahmans were delighted.
Many Brahmans spoke sweet words and said,
‘Ram’s investiture will please and gladden the world,
So great muni, delay no further,
And put the royal tilak upon the king’s forehead.’
Then the muni instructed Sumantra,
Who proceeded with joy to make ready numerous
Chariots, horses and elephants
As soon as he heard the order.
(10A)
He sent out messengers in every direction
To fetch auspicious items,
Then joyfully returned to Vasishtha
And bowed his head at his feet.
(10B)
The city of Avadh was beautifully decorated,
And the gods rained down flowers unceasingly.
Then Ram summoned his attendants and said,
‘Go, first help my friends with their baths.’
Upon hearing his command, his attendants immediately ran
To help Sugriv and the others with their baths.
Then Ram, abode of mercy, called Bharat to him,
And, with his own hands, unknotted his coil of matted hair.
Then the Lord, the merciful Raghurai, cherisher of devotees,
Helped his three brothers to bathe.
Not even a thousand million Sheshnags would be able to relate
Bharat’s blessedness and the Lord’s sweet tenderness.
Then Ram undid his own matted hair,
And with his guru’s permission, bathed.
After bathing, the Lord adorned himself with jewels,
And the beauty of his form put to shame a hundred gods of Love.
Her mothers-in-law with reverence
Helped Janaki to bathe.
They dressed her in bright raiment
And adorned every part of her body with precious jewels.
(11A)
Upon Ram’s left side shone
Ramaa, full of beauty and goodness.
Gazing upon her, the royal mothers all rejoiced,
And considered their births rewarded.
(11B)
Listen, O king of the birds, at that moment,
Brahma, Shiv, the munis and all the gods
Arrived in their chariots
To look upon Ram, the source of all bliss.
(11C)
Gazing at the Lord, Muni Vasishtha’s heart filled with love.
He sent at once for a magnificent throne,
As bright as the sun. Its splendour defies description.
Bowing his head to the Brahmans, Ram took his seat upon it.
Looking upon Raghurai with Janak’s daughter at his side,
The assembled munis were filled with joy.
The Brahmans then recited mantras from the Vedas,
While the gods and munis in the sky cheered in celebration.
First, Muni Vasishtha put the sacred tilak upon Ram’s forehead,
And then instructed all the other Brahmans to do the same.
Seeing their son upon the throne, the royal mothers rejoiced
And performed arti again and again.
They gave many and diverse gifts to the Brahmans,
And gave every beggar so much that he begged no more.
Seeing the master of the three worlds upon Ayodhya’s throne,
The gods beat their drums in jubilation.
Drums resounded in the sky,
Gandharvas and Kinnaras sang,
And crowds of apsaras danced
To the supreme delight of gods and munis.
Bharat, and his brothers Lakshman and Shatrughna,
Vibhishan, Angad, Hanuman and the rest
Held the royal insignia—umbrella, whisk, fan, bow, sword, shield and spear—
And stood in splendour beside the Lord.
With Shri by his side, the jewel of the solar dynasty
Shone with the beauty of many gods of love.
His noble form, dark as a raincloud, clad in yellow,
Captivated the hearts of the gods.
His crown, his armbands and other lovely ornaments
Adorned every part his body.
Blessed indeed are those who beheld him,
With his lotus eyes, broad chest, and mighty arms.
I cannot relate the beauty of the occasion, Khagesh,
And the joy and the magnificence of that gathering.
Sharada, Shesh and the Vedas describe them,
But Mahesh alone knows their true essence.
(12A)
Each praising the Lord, the gods
Returned to their own abodes.
Then arrived the Vedas in the form of minstrels
Into the presence of Lord Ram.
(12B)
The omniscient and compassionate Lord
Received them with reverence—
Though no one else understood this secret.
The Vedas then began to sing of his perfections.
(12C)
Glory to you, visible manifestation of the Absolute, who transcends all attributes of maya!
Incomparable is your beauty, you, the best and greatest of kings,
Who, by the strength of your arm, slew ten-headed Ravan
And other fierce and powerful demons,
And who, becoming incarnate as a man, destroyed the burdens of this world
And put an end to its terrible suffering.
Glory to you, protector of the suppliant, compassionate Lord!
We worship you, O omnipotent God, and Sita, your Shakti, by your side.
O Hari, overcome by your impenetrable maya,
And subject to time, karma and the gunas,
Gods and Asurs, Nagas, men, and all creation, moving and unmoving,
Wander for numberless nights and days along the paths of birth and rebirth.
Lord, those upon whom you have looked at with compassion,
They have been released from the triple afflictions.
Protect us, O Ram!
You who are so quick to destroy the sorrows of this existence—we worship you.
They who, drunk on the pride of learning,
Do not respect devotion to you— which takes away the fear of rebirth—
May reach the state that even gods find difficult to attain;
Yet we see them fall from it again, O Hari.
They who give up reliance on all others, and, reposing their trust in you alone,
Continue to remain your servants,
Cross without effort the ocean of this existence
By merely repeating your name. This is the Lord we invoke.
The feet that Shiv and Brahma adore,
By touching the dust of which the muni’s wife was saved,
From beneath the nails of which flows the celestial stream of the Ganga,
Revered by munis, and sanctifier of the three spheres,
The feet, the soles of which bear the marks of the flag, the thunderbolt, the elephant-goad and the lotus,
And which took on the scars of thorns during your wanderings in the forest—
Those lotus feet, O Mukund, O Ram, O Ramaa’s beloved,
We forever worship.
The tree whose root is the imperceptible brahm, which is without beginning and uncreated,
Whose bark is fourfold, as the Vedas
and Shastras declare,
Which has six trunks, five and twenty branches,
Innumerable leaves and countless flowers,
Which bears fruits of two kinds, bitter and sweet,
Which has a single creeper clinging to it, and which remains protected by it,
Which constantly bears fresh new leaves and flowers—
As that tree of the Universe, we adore you.2
Let those who meditate upon you as the Absolute, the unborn, the one without a second,
Perceptible only by inference, and beyond the mind,
Preach and believe that. But we, O Lord,
Ever sing of the glory of your manifest form.
O abode of compassion, O mine of all virtue, O divine Lord,
We ask this boon of you—
That in thought, word and deed, without change or alteration,
We remain devoted to your feet.
In the sight of all,
The Vedas sang this noble prayer.
They then became invisible,
And returned to Brahma’s abode.
(13A)
O Vainateya, king of the birds,
Then Shambhu came to Raghubir,
And made entreaty, his voice choking
And his body trembling with emotion.
(13B)
‘Glory to you, O Ram, Ramaa’s beloved, destroyer of the world’s afflictions!
Protect this devotee, who is overcome by the fear of rebirth.
O glorious one, king of Avadh, chief of the gods, and Ramaa’s lord,
Have mercy on me who has come to you for refuge.
O destroyer of Ravan, with his ten heads and twenty arms,
You have rid the earth of great and numerous afflictions.
The demon hosts, like swarms of moths,
Perished in the fierce flames of your purifying arrows.
Holding a noble bow, arrow and quiver, you are
The most beautiful ornament of this earthly orb.
You are the radiant rays of the sun that dispel the dense darkness
Of the night that is pride, ignorance and attachment.
Mind-born Love, like a savage hunter,
Killed the deer that is men with the arrow of lust.
O Hari, slay this hunter and save these foolish and helpless creatures
Who have lost their way in the forest of sensual desire.
The many ills and sorrows that afflict people,
Are the fruit of their disregard for your feet.
Those men who do not love your lotus feet,
Forever drift upon the bottomless ocean of birth and rebirth.
Those who cherish no love for your lotus feet,
Remain eternally wretched, miserable and sad,
But those for whom your story, master, is their support,
Forever hold dear the saints and you, the eternal Lord.
They are free from anger, greed, arrogance and pride,
So that, for them, prosperity and adversity are the same.
And for this reason, munis abandon faith in asceticism forever,
And joyfully become your servants.
Making a solemn vow, and with a pure heart,
They everlastingly love and serve your lotus feet.
All such holy men, whether they receive reverence or scorn,
Regard both the same, and happily wander the world.
You who are the honey bee to the lotuses that are the hearts of holy men,
O Raghubir, invincible and steadfast in battle—I worship you.
Your name I repeat unceasingly and bow to you, O Hari,
You who are the enemy of pride, and the remedy for the disease of rebirth.
O supreme abode of virtue, goodness and compassion,
Shri’s beloved—I worship you without ceasing.
O Raghunandan, put an end to all dualities,
And, O protector of this earth, look upon your humble servant.
Again and again, I ask this boon of you—
Be pleased to grant it, gracious Vishnu—
Of unceasing devotion to your lotus feet,
And constant association with your devotees.’
(14A)
After thus relating Ram’s virtues,
Uma’s lord returned joyously to Kailash.
Then the Lord had assigned to the monkeys,
Residences comfortable and pleasing in every way.
(14B)
O king of the birds, this tale is all-purifying.
It removes the afflictions of the triple fires and destroys the fear of rebirth.
Upon hearing this story of great King Ram’s royal investiture,
Men acquire detachment and discernment.
Those who listen to it or sing it with intent,
Obtain every kind of happiness and prosperity,
And, after enjoying in this world bliss that is difficult even for gods to attain,
They go, at the end, to Raghupati’s divine abode.
If those freed from all future existence, the detached from the world, and the worldly hear it,
They acquire faith, union with the Absolute, and ever-increasing prosperity.
O king of the birds, Ram’s story, which I have narrated according to my understanding,
Takes away fear and sorrow.
It reinforces dispassion, discernment and devotion,
And is a beautiful boat in which to cross the river of delusion.
Each day there was some new celebration in Koshal’s city,
And the people all continued to rejoice.
All felt an ever-increasing love for Ram’s lotus feet,
Which Shiv, the munis and Brahma adore.
Mendicants were given clothes in great abundance,
While Brahmans received gifts of many kinds.
The monkeys were immersed in divine bliss,
All devoted to the Lord’s feet.
They did not notice the passing of the days,
And six months went by.
(15)
They forgot their homes, and did not remember them even in dream,
Just as holy men never even think of harming others.
Then Raghupati summoned all his friends and allies,
Who came and reverently bowed their heads to him.
With supreme love, he seated them beside him,
And spoke sweet words to gladden their devoted hearts.
‘You have done me great service,
But how can I praise you to your face?
You gave up your homes and your comforts for my sake,
And for that, I hold you most dear.
I love my brothers, my kingdom, my wealth,
Vaidehi, my life, my home and my family.
They are all dear to me, but none as dear as you.
These are true, these words of mine.
As a rule, all love their followers,
But I have special love for those who serve me.
Now, my friends, return home, all of you,
And there worship me most steadfastly.
Knowing me ever to be all-pervading and beneficent to all,
Love me most dearly.’
(16)
Listening to the Lord, all grew so engrossed
That they forgot their own bodies and who or where they were.
They stood with folded hands, gazing at him unblinkingly.
Overwhelmed with love, they could not utter a word.
The Lord saw their great love,
And discoursed at length to them on wisdom and true understanding.
They were unable to speak in the presence of the Lord,
But turned their gaze again and again to his lotus feet.
Then the Lord called for jewels and rich garments
Of many colours and incomparable splendour.
First Bharat with his own hands prepared a set
And conferred it upon Sugriv.
By the Lord’s command, Lakshman next bestowed the robes of ho
nour
Upon Vibhishan, king of Lanka. This pleased Raghupati greatly.
But Angad remained seated and did not move,
And the Lord, seeing his love, did not call him.
Raghunath himself bestowed the jewels and garments
Upon Jamvant, Nil and the others,
And holding Ram’s image in their hearts,
They all bowed their heads at his feet and left.
(17A)
Then Angad rose and bowed his head,
And, with eyes full of tears and folded hands,
He spoke with deep humility,
Words that were steeped in love.
(17B)
‘O all-knowing Lord, ocean of compassion and bliss,
Merciful to the lowly, and friend of the distressed,
In his moment of death, Lord, my father Baali
Placed me in your charge.
Uphold your especial attribute of being the refuge of the helpless,
And do not abandon me, O benefactor of the faithful.
You are my guru, my father and my mother, Lord.
Where shall I go, leaving your lotus feet?
Think on it yourself and tell me, O king of men,
Separated from you, what use is my home to me?
Lord, keep me with you. A child without wisdom, intellect, or strength,
And your humble devotee,
I will do all the lowliest tasks in the palace,
And gazing upon your lotus feet, I will cross the ocean of this existence.’
So saying, he fell at the Lord’s feet and said,
‘Now, my master, do not ask me to go home.’
Upon hearing Angad’s meek and humble words,
Lord Raghupati, pinnacle of compassion,
Raised him and clasped him to his heart,
His lotus eyes full of tears.
(18A)
Giving Baali’s son his own necklace,
And clothing him in his own robes and jewels,
The divine Lord sent him away
With many words of comfort.
(18B)
Recalling the devoted Angad’s great deeds, Bharat,
With his brothers Shatrughna and Saumitri, proceeded to see him off.
But Angad’s heart was so full of love,