|
 The place Bharata occupies in the epic is somewhat strange. He is an important character, but not a major character. His name mentioned in not more than five or six places in the Bala Kanda. The first mention of course is, when he is christened by Vasishta. We hear of his tender love for Rama. He drives the chariot in which Sri Rama comes on the day of his marriage. And then he marries Mandavi, daughter of Kusadwaja - younger brother of Janaka. The Bala Kanda mentions nothing more than that about Bharata.
It is in Ayodhya Kanda that we see his characterisation takes perfect shape - the evolution so to say. And from then on, he does not play any part in the epic though his name is mentioned with reverence in several places. Vali, when he was slayed by Rama and was infuriated by his act (before he was convinced of his own folly and faults), goes to the extent of chiding Rama
'thooyavan maindhane nee bharatan mun thondrinaaye.' Ye son of a father who gave his life up for the sake of honour and truth! Should you have seen the light before the saintly Bharata! That is, 'are you worthy of such a brother?' His nobility is spoken so high of in several important instances. We meet him again only in the last portion of the Yudhdha Kanda, the Book of Battles.
As Sri VVS Aiyar mentions,
 Bharata is, as well as is not intimately connected with the story of the epic. He is connected intimately with our story in that his love for Rama gives rise to some of the most touching episodes in the epic, and also, chiefly in that it is for his sake that Kaikeyi forces Dasaratha to send Rama to the forest. He is not intimately connected with the story in that he is not associated with Rama in the destruction of Ravana and his forces.
But the reader that knows not Bharata misses more than half the beauty of the Ramayana, and knows not one of the most touching characters known to story or history.
He was born when the constellation Pusya was in the ascendant and the sun had entered the zodiacal sign of Pisces, the asterism that followed Rama's birth star, Punarvasu. The Valmiki Ramayana describes him as representing a quarter of Lord Vishnu. Chakravarti Rajagopalachariar (Rajaji) makes the following observation on this.
'Rama is said to represent a half of Vishnu; Bharata a quarter; Lakshmana and Chatrugna, one eighth each. However, these are not important matters. You cannot bisect the Lord into portions. Even the smallest portion of the Lord is complete in itself.
Aum poorna madah poornamidam poornaadh poornamudachyadhe
Poornasya poornamaanaaya poorname vaa vasishyathe
That which is there is whole and that which is here is whole too. Wholeness is born of wholeness and if wholeness is removed from wholeness, it is wholeness that remains.'
 One question naturally arises when one thinks of the coronation ceremony of Rama, one wonders why it was fixed on a day when Bharata was not in town! Why would it be fixed in such a hurry without waiting for Bharata to return to Ayodhya? Scholars tell us that not even an invitation was sent to Asvapati and Janaka. That is a question that deserves our attention now.
Hari Krishnan
More
Articles
|
