महावीरचरितम् (महाकवि भवभूति - वीररस-प्रधान रामकथा नाटक सम्पूर्ण ७ अङ्क सटीक)

65] Act IV, Kausalyā and Janaka — Translation [—iv. 17ᶜ
whole purpose of my existence: my body, my soul, my whatever-
else-dearer-than-these-there-may-be—was there anything that
that great and illustrious King Daśaratha was not to me? 13
And is this, alas, that same Kausalyā?—
Between her and her Lord, in [the confidence of] privacy,
whatever occasion of displeasure there arose, it was to me that
the husband and the wife severally communicated their complaints;
and then, whether it was a case for forbearance or for anger, the
issue rested entirely with me. Away rather with these memories
that assail and consume my heart! 14
Arundhatī—Alas, alas! With this long suspension of breath her heart has
[almost] ceased to beat!
Janaka—Alas, my dear friend! Sprinkles [her] with water from his
_kamaṇḍalu._¹
Chamberlain—Having at first, like a delightful bosom-friend, mani-
fested unalloyed favours, Fate, terrible in the suddenness of its
reverses, is next intensifying [by contrast] the anguish of the
heart. 15
Kausalyā, regaining consciousness—Alas my child, Jānakī, where art thou?
I [still] remember thy face all suffused with the glory imparted to it by
thy [recent] marriage sacraments, [thy face] with that pure smile playing
upon it, and charming like a [full-blown] lotus. With limbs fair as the
light of the shining moon, once more, my darling, do thou grace my lap.
The great King [Daśaratha] would always say: "Of the mightier ancestors
of the race of Raghu she may be a daughter-in-law; to us, however—
such is our friendship for Janaka—she is just 'little daughter' [no more,
but no less]."
Chamberlain—It was, just as the Queen has said:
Although the King [Daśaratha] had five children, it was [Rāma]
the enemy of Subāhu² that was specially dear to him. So
likewise, among his four daughters-in-law, Sītā was as much
adored by him as was his own daughter, Śāntā. 16
Janaka—Oh, my dear friend, thou great King, Daśaratha! So indeed thou
art, in every way a delight to the heart: How canst thou be forgotten?
It is customary (kila) for the parents of the bride to pay court to
the kinsfolk of the son-in-law; but with our connexion [through
the marriage of Rāma and Sītā] all was reversed: it was me that
thou wast assiduous to please! Such as thou hast been, Time
¹ An ascetic's gourd. ² A demon who molested Viśvāmitra's sacri-
fice, and who was killed by Rāma.
9 [H.O.S. 21]