The couriers of the kingdom were immediately sent out to ride to Kekaya to find their new king. Preparations were made for Dasaratha's funeral ceremony, but all of it felt too soon for anyone to actually accomplish much of anything. The seamstress could not find her dexterity while sewing his silken gown and the carpenter could not manage to avoid cracking the wood on his casket that was being carved away. It seemed as if the people of Ayodhya had lost a father-- their king Dasaratha.
When the couriers arrived in Kekaya, iDasarat was revealed to them that they were in search of the king's son Bharata. All of the messengers were confused. One said, "By Brahma, this is not Bharata's throne to take!". Another retorted, "I'd soon assume we give the kingdom up to the Rakshasas if Dasaratha or Rama is not the one caring for us". Nevertheless, the couriers retrived Bharata from his residence. He appeared very disturbed; his beard had become long and grisly, and his eyes yelped out for sleep. Bharata had not slept for at least two days, and even if he managed to sleep, the only dream he managed to have was the same horrible terror. It was a simple nightmare. He would be walking through the forest, obviously on a hunt. But no matter which direction he traveled, he always managed to get back to the same clearance. Then he would hear screaming (which he managed could be of his mother) in the distance and chains shattering. He tried to run to help whomever was being tortured, but still could not manage to escape the clutches of the forest. The screaming got so loud that the trees began to bleed from their ears. He could only wake up if he managed to run himself hard enough into one of the bases of the trees.
Bharata pleaded, "Have you come to help me with my quest for proper slumber?" The couriers shook their heads, and felt awful about the inevitable news they would have to explain to this clearly drained son of a lost king. Bharata sat them down and requested that his roommate (and uncle) play some soft music so as to calm his nerves. He felt that he knew what was happening. "It's my mother, isn't it? I've only had the most horrible dreams about her screams in the wilderness near Ayodhya". The messenger stopped him before Bharata could go on, "No, your mother is in good health". Bharata had no more patience to guess who in the family had fallen and began to weep. "It was Rama, wasn't it?" The couriers again shook their heads.
One of the messengers who had yet to speak gently grabbed Bharata's hand and solemnly explained, "Bharata, son of the great Dasaratha, you must know that your father has died from shock and grief due to your brother's exile into the wilderness of Ayodhya. We understand how hard of a a time this must be for you, but we also request your presence in Ayodhya as the new king. We have made arrangements for you to take your throne in the morning". And as the last bit of his speech trailed off all of the messengers and the son of a great king began to sob synchronously They planned to return that night, but soon realized that this was a time to mourn with their newly established king.
Author's note:
I tried to make this story more about how sad and distraught everyone was after the king's death. I didn't like how the messengers would not tell Bharata that it was his father who had died until Bharata made it back to Ayodhya to see for himself. I also wanted to make more of a connection between the messengers and Bharata as they mourned over the loss of a father and king.
Buck, William (1976). Ramayana: King Rama's Way.
Wow, I really love what you did with this story! I definitely found your version to be much more emotional and touching! I also thought it was wrong that the messengers did not tell Bharata what had happened, because he was just left coming up with terrible scenarios! The messengers in this story was much more empathetic to Bharata. I really liked that they gave him a night to mourn. Great job capturing the emotions in the story!
ReplyDeleteI liked that you focused on how much the king's death had devastated his subjects and family. It really shows how loved he was and how great of a ruler he must have been. I also thought it was interesting that you gave insight into how Bharata must have been reacting when not immediately told of the messengers' reason to visit. I have anxiety, so I know how something like that could drive someone crazy. My mind would be racing. Overall, I love how you portrayed the kingdom and Bharata's grief. It gave emotional depth to the story that I think may have been lost in the original telling.
ReplyDeleteThis was very interesting. I can't even fathom how Bharata must have felt when he was given the news about his fathers death. I also think that it was unfair in the original telling that the messengers didn't inform him about his fathers death until he was back in the city. I feel bad for Bharata at this moment because his news was so bittersweet. It was like "hey, you're dad is dead, but surprise you're going to be king". He had no time to be excited for himself because he was too busy wondering about Rama and his father.
ReplyDeleteI like how you chose to retell the story of Dasartha's death and Bharata's acknowledgment of this. How you described the sense of loss by the people was really clever, with them forgetting things or messing up like their universe was unbalanced now. The use of dialogue also added to the feelings of both the people and Bharata over the King's death. I also like how you added Bharata's loss of sleep over his nightmares as part of the story since this asserts that what has been going on was meant to happen or was in the atmosphere somehow if Bharata knew from his dreams something was not right. Good Job!
ReplyDeleteThis one definitely ended up quite interesting. I like that you added depth and intensified feeling to the original story. I kind of wish that you had transformed it a bit more like what you did with your more recent stories, but I think it’s still really good! I think you’ve got a real talent for this retelling business. Anyway, great job on this one as well!
ReplyDeleteI really love this story! I would definitely recommend using it in your portfolio.
ReplyDeleteI like that you explored this untold side of the story of Dasaratha's death. You have great descriptions of how the whole kingdom is affected - I like the descriptions of the seamstress, the carpenter, etc.
I also love how you gave Bharata these dreams foretelling some tragedy. It fit very well with the mood of the story, and it seemed like something that would fit in perfectly with the actual epic. That, along with Bharata trying to guess who had died, created a good sense of foreboding and suspense, even though the reader already knows what happened. Great job!