Chapter 22 - Shri Rama appeals to Shri Lakshmana not to grieve

Shri Ramacandra then turned to Shri Lakshmana, who unable to endure his distress, full of wrath against Kaikeyi, his eyes distorted, was breathing heavily like a mighty elephant. Addressing him in terms of affection as a beloved brother and friend, patiently calming his fears, Rama said: “O Brother, give up grief and anger and arm thyself with patience, forgetting the preparations made for mine installation, make thyself ready for my departure to the forest. O Lakshmana, prepare with the same zeal as you didst prepare for my coronation. The mind of my mother, Kaikeyi, is clouded with suspicion on account of my proposed enthronement, therefore, O Lakshmana, act so that her suspicions may be allayed. O Brother, Mother Kaikeyi believes you will use force to place me on the throne. This I cannot endure, nor can I suffer her to experience anxiety. At no time, do I recollect that I have voluntarily given cause for offence to my parents. O Lakshmana, let us relieve the apprehensions of our royal father, ever truthful and valiant but now fearful lest his future life be jeopardized. If I do not abandon the desire for the crown, the distress caused to the heart of the king, at the violation of his vow, will be mine also. O Lakshmana, because of this, I desire to enter the forest without delay, abandoning the project of mine installation. Thinking her purpose accomplished, Queen Kaikeyi will to-day, if I depart for the forest, cause her son Bharata to be summoned and will make over the kingdom to him with joy. The heart of Kaikeyi will find no rest till I, dressed in a deer skinj with matted locks, enter the forest. I cannot grieve her, who has urged me to go to the forest and contributed to my resolution, therefore, I will depart without delay. O Lakshmana, the acquisition of the kingdom is not part of my destiny. If providence had favoured me, Kaikeyi would not have desired to send me to the forest. O Dear One, you knowest no distinction was made by me between my three mothers, nor has Kaikeyi looked on me as different from Prince Bharata, but to-day to frustrate my coronation and send me into exile, she has uttered cruel and pitiless words. This is the will of God and nought else. Had it not been so, how should Kaikeyi the daughter of a king, of gentle disposition and noble nature, speak thus like a vulgar woman in the presence of her husband? Whatever is inscrutable to man should be known to be the decree of providence; even Brahma cannot evade the consequences of karma. It is this unalterable and fixed decree that has created the dissension between Kaikeyi and me, not to be understood by man.

“Pleasure, pain, fear, anger, profit and loss, life and death, and similar matters come into being as a result of our karma. Even the sages practising great austerities, prompted by their karma, abandoning asceticism have been swept away by concupiscence and avarice. This sudden happening, never apprehended, this frustration of a well-devised plan is the work of karma. Therefore, I in no wise regret my resolve nor the cancellation of my coronation. Do you also abandon grief and following me forget the preparations for the coronation. O Lakshmana, with these vessels of water brought hither for mine installation, let my dedication to the ascetic life, be made. Yet what use have I now for these sacred waters? From now on, I shall draw water with mine own hands for every ritual.

“O Lakshmana, do not grieve that the installation ceremony remains unperformed. We know by reason and discernment that there is little difference between ruling a kingdom and living in a forest. O Lakshmana, do not for an instant blame Queen Kaikeyi for obstructing my coronation; prompted by karma, men say what is unlawful.”