Five Sufferings Of The People Of Ayodhya

“Of what use are wealth, comforts and pleasures, home, wives, and sons if one is not able to see Shri Rama?” (Valmiki Ramayana, Ayodhya Kand, 48.7)

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किं नु तेषां गृहैः कार्यं किं दारै: किं धनेन वा।
पुत्रैर्वा किं सुखैर्वापि ये न पश्यन्ति राघवम्।।

kiṃ nu teṣāṃ gṛhaiḥ kāryaṃ kiṃ dārai: kiṃ dhanena vā
putrairvā kiṃ sukhairvāpi ye na paśyanti rāghavam

1. Rama leaving

It is supposed to be a boon. Something like a reward for prior good deeds. Enough sukriti accumulated that the meritorious credits lead you towards a sacred place, during a sacred time, when the area is most blessed with the direct presence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Vishnu, in His avatara of Shri Rama.

To call it a blessing is understandable. Living in Ayodhya, you get to see Rama every day. You get to hear about Him. Your entire life revolves around His actions. His conduct certainly reflects a high birth. He is the eldest son of King Dasharatha, the latest to appear in the heralded dynasty of the Raghus, and the charitra is everything you would expect of a member of such a family.

कुलीनमकुलीनं वा वीरं पुरुषमानिनम्
चारित्रमेव व्याख्याति शुचिं वा यदि वाऽशुचिम्

kulīnamakulīnaṃ vā vīraṃ puruṣamāninam
cāritrameva vyākhyāti śuciṃ vā yadi vā’śucim

“It is certainly a person’s conduct which speaks to whether they are high-born or low-born, heroic or cowardly, or pure or impure.” (Lord Rama, Valmiki Ramayana, Ayodhya Kand, 109.4)

Imagine, then, that one day everything changes. The person you were most fond of, the one you always thought about, who made every single day in the manner of dina-kara, the sun, suddenly leaves. It is an abrupt departure. Not planned in the slightest, but some family infighting has led to Rama’s banishment from the kingdom for fourteen years.

The citizens are so attached, so against the injustice, that they decide to follow Rama. The wives admonish their husbands. All those comforts at home. All those items of pleasure. What are they worth if the opportunity to see Rama is not there?

2. Lakshmana leaving

To add to the suffering, Lakshmana also leaves. He is the dutiful younger brother of Rama, though born of a different queen. He is also like Vishnu, but showing a different side. Rama is the object of worship and Lakshmana is the ideal worshiper. The younger brother lives up to the name of Ramanuja by volunteering to accept the same punishment. He will also live like an ascetic in the forest for fourteen years.

3. Sita leaving

Not to be outdone, Sita Devi also decides to leave. This is quite the surprise since no one expects the beautiful wife of delicate features to accept such austerity. Rama tried His best to dissuade her, but He eventually lost the argument. The people of Ayodhya had to witness the humiliation of Sita changing into different clothes, from those of a princess to those of the wife of an ascetic.

4. Dasharatha departing

The suffering only continued, as the king could not tolerate the separation. He loved Rama so much that he eventually died from the condition. He was so desperate to see that beloved son, who was dutiful, honorable, righteous, and chivalrous, that the longing was too much to tolerate.

Though the king may not be a direct family member, living in the same home, he can have that same kind of influence. Everything else will be alright, no matter the troubles in life, as long as there is a righteous and caring leader at the helm. Once that leader is no longer there, it is like a giant void remains.

5. Bharata living in a cottage

The whole reason for the sequence of events was to make Bharata the next leader of Ayodhya. His mother, Queen Kaikeyi, wanted this. Except Bharata did not. When he learned of the plan, of the departure of Rama and Dasharatha, Bharata too fell into an ocean of grief. He so much refused to benefit from the events that he intentionally chose a life of asceticism for the duration of Rama’s exile. He would remain in a cottage, worshiping Rama’s sandals, while acting as king in a formal sense, only.

The question must be asked. If there is so much suffering in Ayodhya, why is it a boon to take birth in such a place? If terrible things happen to good people, what is the point to following dharma? Why take birth at all if there are so many accompanying points of pain? What pleasure can there be in the life experience?

A wise person like Shri Hanuman still relives those events. He does not view the outcome as a tragedy. Everything would end well. The time was tolerated. Rama returned after fourteen years. More importantly, His name continues to be sung in this world. His glories are still told, and so anyone who is fortunate to access those glories has fulfilled the meaning to the human birth.

In Closing:

Worst news to receive,
That Rama suddenly to leave.

And with Him Lakshmana taking,
The entire kingdom forsaking.

Sita travelling along too,
Devised this evil who?

Despite the grief to traverse,
Blessed in that story to immerse.