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

vi. 6ᵃᵇ—] Bhavabhūti — Uttara-Rāma-Charita [84
This wind has dissolved all clouds, numerous though they were,
into we-know-not-what (kvāpi), thus resembling the [highest]
knowledge which dissolves [all] illusory-forms (vivarta) into
the [fathomless] Brahma. 6
Female Sprite—But, my dear, who now is this [person], the fringe of
whose upper garment is floating [to the winds] as he, in flurry, tosses up
his hands, [this one here] who, even from afar, has by his sweet words
forbidden the continuance of the combat and who is bringing [this] his
excellent aerial car to the ground right between the two Princes?
Male Sprite, observing—This is the Lord of the Raghus [Rāma], returning
from [his mission of] killing Śambūka:
Upon hearing the words uttered by this great personage [Rāma],
Lava, out of deference to him, has withheld the discharge [of
further missiles] and is appeased; Chandraketu is already paying
his homage: may happiness attend the King [Rāma] by his being
united with his [own] sons! 7
Come, let us hence. Both go out.
END OF INTERLUDE.
Then enter Rāma, and Lava, and Chandraketu [in the act of] making
obeisance [to Rāma].
Rāma, alighting from the Pushpaka—
Moon (chandra) of the Solar race, my Chandraketu, come, quick,
let me hold thee fast to my bosom! With thy body, cool like
a lump of snow, let all the burnings of my heart be allayed! 8
Raising him up and embracing him with tears of affection. Has it all
been prosperous with thee and the celestial weapons into which thou hast
been initiated?
Chandraketu—All prosperous, [especially] by the happy acquisition of this
sweet-looking and wonderfully valiant Lava. Let me request my honoured
sire, therefore, to regard with the same affection with which you are wont
to regard me, or even with more, this most eminent hero.
Rāma, observing Lava—Happily this my son's [Chandraketu's] friend has
a form that is at once quite serene and charming:
He seems to be the very Science of Arms assuming a bodily form
to protect the people; or is he the Code of Chivalry (kshātra-
dharma) itself encased in a [human] body to safeguard the
treasure of the Sacred Word? He is as if the aggregation of

85] Act VI, Princes Recognized — Translation [—vi. 12ᵈ
all powers, the sum total of all [good] qualities, or the accumulated
store of all the holy products of the world—standing out in
a visible form. 9
Lava, to himself—This great personage, how serene is the sight of him
and his prowess!
He is the one great source of confidence and friendship and
devotion all at the same time: of some pre-eminent merit [of
mine] he seems to be the [very] fruition, moving in a bodily
form. 10
Wonderful!
All enmity is at an end; a feeling of intense joy creeps over [my
soul]; that [former] impudence has departed, I know not where:
it is modesty that now sways me. Wherefore is it then that,
at the sight of him, I have so suddenly lost control over myself?
Or rather [it must be that] great men, like holy places, have
some priceless and inexplicable efficacy. 11
Rāma—Why then is it that this [boy], all of a sudden, alleviates my
sorrows and, through some cause unknown, fills my inmost soul with
affection? Or rather, that affection should at all be dependent upon any
[assignable] cause is contrary [to all experience].
What binds things together is some inward mysterious tie: it
is certainly not upon outward circumstances that affection rests.
For, at the rise of the sun, the lotus [of itself] blooms, and so,
when the moon rises, does the moon-gem (chandrakānta) ooze. 12
Lava—Chandraketu, who is this great personage?
Chandraketu—My dear friend, it is the venerable father.
Lava—So likewise then must he be to me, strictly-speaking (dharmataḥ),
since thou callest me thy dear friend. But there are, as I have learnt,
four persons, the worthy heroes of the Rāmāyaṇa story, who claim from
you this mode of appellation. So tell me [more] definitely.
Chandraketu—Understand then that he is my eldest sire.
Lava, transported with joy—What! The Lord of the Raghus [Rāma] in
person! Blessings on the dawn of a day that has brought me the sight
of this [divine] King! After looking [at him] with eager curiosity and
reverence. Sire, this is Lava, the pupil of the son of Varuṇa [Vālmīki],
saluting you.
Rāma—Come, long-lived one, come. Embracing him affectionately.
Enough, my dear boy, enough of this excess of modesty. Let me fold
thee again and again in a close embrace.

vi. 13ᵃᵇ—] Bhavabhūti — Uttara-Rāma-Charita [86
Soft and smooth and tender like the mellowed (pariṇata) interior
of a full-blown lotus, and cool like the moon or like the juice of
sandal—thy touch fills me with joy. 13
Lava, to himself—Such is the causeless affection of this [great personage]
towards me! And I, in my stupidity, conceived hostility even towards
him, and carried my perverseness to the point of taking up arms against
him! Aloud. Will the venerable father now pardon this Lava his childish
folly?
Rāma—What is the fault that the dear one has committed ?
Chandraketu—Hearing from the escorts of the horse the proclamation of
Your Honour's valour, he has displayed his heroism.
Rāma—Why, this is just what adorns a Kshatriya.
For, a valorous man does not tolerate the encroaching valour of
others: such is his proper nature inherent in his constitution and
therefore not artificial; [and this explains] why it is that when
the divine Sun shines incessantly with his rays, the fire-stone,
as if in wounded pride, vomits flames. 14
Chandraketu—Even an intolerance [of this sort] becomes graceful only
in a [great] hero like him. For, let my revered father but see how the
jṛimbhaka missile discharged by my dear friend has thrown all these
forces into a dead stupor!
Rāma, observing—Dear Lava, withdraw the missile; and do thou also,
Chandraketu, console thy forces that are stock-still in paralysing stupor.
Lava falls into a meditation.
Chandraketu—So as you command. Exit.
Lava—The missile is at rest.
Rāma—Dear [Lava], these [jṛimbhaka] missiles and the secret spells for
employing and withdrawing them have a tradition of their own [without
which they cannot be imparted]:
Brahmā (Brahmán) and others, in the interest of the Sacred Truth
(bráhman), practised penances for over a thousand autumns. And
then those Sires (guru) of old obtained a vision of these [missiles]
as if these were the very fires of their own penances. 15
Then the occult formulae relating to the study of these holy [missiles] the
exalted Kṛiśāśva imparted to the son of Kuśika, [Viśvāmitra,] who had been
his pupil for over a thousand years; and that exalted one [Viśvāmitra]
[imparted them] to me. This then has been the previous succession [of
teachers]. I would know therefore whence hast thou, noble youth, received
the tradition?

87] Act VI, Princes Recognized — Translation [—vi. 19ᵇ
Lava—The missiles revealed themselves spontaneously to both of us.
Rāma, reflecting—Nothing is impossible. It may be some peculiar greatness
following as the result of the ripening of some pre-eminent merit. But,
how ‘both of us’?
Lava—We are two brothers—twins.
Rāma—Where then is the other?
[Voice,] behind the curtain—Bhāṇḍāyana, Bhāṇḍāyana!
“That the long-lived Lava has had an affray with the army of
the King”—is there any truth in this report? “Even so, dear
friend,” didst thou say? To-day then, in all the worlds, let
the title ‘supreme king’ come to an end, and let the fires of
the Kshatriya weapons be all quenched this day! 16
Rāma—Who now may this be—he, of a complexion dark-blue like
a sapphire, who even by the sound [of his voice] gives me a thrill
of horripilation and makes me seem like a kadamba [tree] that,
at the deep roar of an early and sable rain-cloud, instantly bursts
forth into buds? 17
Lava—This is he, my elder [brother], the noble Kuśa by name, [just]
returned from Bharata’s hermitage.¹
Rāma, in eagerness—Hither, my dear boy, hither call him, the long-lived one.
Lava—Very well. Walks about.
Then enters Kuśa.
Kuśa, twanging his bow in joyful assurance and pride—
If it is with the scions of the Solar race, with those kings who
have given their tribute of protection even unto [God] Indra, and
who ever since the times of Manu—that exalted Son of the
Sun-god—have ever, for consuming the high and the mighty,
set ablaze their fires of Kshatriya valour—if it is with these
that to-day I am to have a fight, then blessed is this my bow, the
string of which is radiant with the fierce-shooting flames that
flash from the fiery arms. 18
Moves about in hauteur.
Rāma—A rare abundance of manliness has this lovable (-ka) young
Kshatriya!
His eye, for even the mightiest of the mighty of the three worlds,
shows a disdain as if for mere chaff; his stride, at once firm and
proud, seems as though bending the earth low [in submission];
¹ See iv. 22³³ ᶠᶠ· above, p. 69.

vi. 19ᶜ—] Bhavabhūti — Uttara-Rāma-Charita [88
even in his tender-youth he carries the hauteur of a mountain—
Is it the Sentiment of Heroism or of Pride that, [incarnate in
him,] is approaching me? 19
Lava, approaching [Kuśa]—Victory unto the noble one!
Kuśa—Well, long-lived [Lava], what is all this talk about the fight?
Lava—Ah, a mere trifle. Towards this one, let my noble brother, laying
aside his haughty bearing, behave with respect.
Kuśa—And why?
Lava—Because it is the King, the Lord of the Raghus, that is standing
there. He is affectionate towards us and is eager to meet you.
Kuśa, reflecting—Dost thou mean the hero of the Rāmāyaṇa story, the
guardian of the treasures of the Sacred Word?
Lava—The same.
Kuśa—He certainly is a great man, and to see him is sanctifying and
a thing to wish for! But how are we going to accost him, that is what
I do not see.
Lava—In the mode prescribed for a guru: with reverence.
Kuśa—But how in the world can that be?
Lava—Here is Chandraketu, son of Ūrmilā, a youth exceedingly noble,
who calls me his dear friend and offers me his friendship; so by virtue
of that relation this Royal sage becomes, strictly speaking, our father.¹
Kuśa—In that case, albeit a Kshatriya, we may show him deference
without incurring any reproach [for lack of self-respect].
Both walk about.
Lava—Let my noble brother look upon this great personality: [Are not]
his mien, his majesty, his serene-dignity sure indications of those countless
and extraordinarily noble achievements?
Kuśa, gazing attentively—
How graceful is his form—how hallowing his majestic presence!
Rightly indeed has the poet of the Rāmāyaṇa [Vālmīki] trans-
formed² the Goddess of Speech [into that poem]. 20
Approaching. Father, this is Kuśa, the pupil of the son of Varuṇa
[Vālmīki], making his salutation.
Rāma—Come, thou long-lived one, come:
Here am I eager, in my affection, to embrace thee whose form-
and-stature is lovely like a cloud filled with nectar. 21
Embraces him. To himself. Whose child then may this youth be? [He
seems to be—]
¹ The irony of the dramatic situation is obvious. ² Compare ii. 5ᵃᶠᶠ. above.

89] Act VI, Princes Recognized — Translation [—vi. 27¹
Like the innermost essence of affection exuded from every particle
of my body—as if the very substance of my soul, issuing from
here and standing there visibly before me—besprinkled, as it
were, with the very meltings of my heart when stirred up with
an intense emotion of joy: him as I embrace, he seems to be,
as it were, pouring a stream of ambrosial juice [upon me]. 22
Lava—Father, upon our brows the hot-rayed [sun] is burning. Will you
therefore deign to take a seat a while in the dense shade of this Sāla tree?
Rāma—Yes, if it is agreeable to my son.
*They move about and sit down in the proper manner.*¹
Rāma, to himself—
Ha! Although they are deferential in their conduct, these postures
in walking and standing and sitting, both of Kuśa and of Lava,
they are things that bespeak their [future] sovereignty. 23
These stately graces that seem inherently to belong to it: they
set off a body that is handsome and waxes lovelier at every
phase;—as do the pleasing rays the spotless jewel, or the drops
of honey the full-blown lotus. 24
I note further that they both possess in large measure the traits common
to the princes of the [royal] race of Raghu:
A form dark-blue like the throat of some lusty pigeon, the
shoulders broad like those of a young bull, the pose (āśaya)
[very] elegant; a look dauntless like that of a reposing lion, and
a voice deep-and-full like a festive drum! 25
Observing [more] closely. Ah! It is not merely with mine that their form
bears resemblance, but—
There are also those traits proper to the daughter of Janaka
[Sītā]—all to be clearly made out here in these two boys: It
is as if once again has come within the range of my sight that
face of my beloved wife in all the glory of a fresh and full-blown
lotus! 26
Lovely with the lustre of teeth clear as pearls, here are their
lips of the very same stamp, and also the same curve of the
ear. The eyes, to be sure, are not blue;² but they have the same
note of comeliness. 27
Thoughtfully. And this is that same forest, inhabited by the son of
Varuṇa [Vālmīki], where, I was told, the Queen was abandoned. And
¹ So as to reveal to Rāma their princely ² 'Not blue', but red, as a man's eyes should
breeding. be, according to Sāmudrika-śāstra.
12 [H.O.S. 21]

vi. 27²—] Bhavabhūti — Uttara-Rāma-Charita [90
such here are the looks and the age and the prowess of these two [boys].
Now as to the missiles being self-revealed to them, let me see: Can it
really be that the permission which, in the course of our viewing those
pictures, I gave unto the missiles has had its effect? For, even in the case of
the ancients, we never have heard of any missiles obtained without a [formal]
handing over. There is also this my heart’s extreme joy-and-sorrow that
affords to my wavering mind [further] assurance. Often had I perceived
that it was twins that the Queen would bring forth. With tears:
In those days gone by, when our love, once formed, had grown
with the growth of familiarity, I was the first, with the practised
feel of my hand, to discover, in the confidence of privacy—her
eyes lowered nevertheless in her inborn bashfulness—that it was
twins that were in store for her. It was some days later that
she discovered it. 28 Weeps.
Shall I then, in some way or other, ask them [directly]?
Lava—What can this mean, Father?
Unto this face that is as a blessing to the world, with this shower
of tears, you are lending the beauty of a white lotus glistening
[lit. besprinkled] with dew-drops. 29
Kuśa—But don’t you see, my dear boy?—
Without his Queen, Sītā, to the Lord of the Raghus what thing
is there that may not be painful? For, with the loss of one’s
beloved, the whole world, it is said, becomes a wilderness! On
the one hand, that [extreme] degree of love, and here, on the other,
is this separation that is endless! Why askest thou thus then,
as if thou hadst never studied the Rāmāyaṇa? 30
Rāma, to himself—Oh, they talk as if the matter did not concern them:
no need therefore of asking any [direct] question. Thou wretched heart!
What means this thy sudden transport of emotion? Not being able to
contain within me the anguish of my heart, I am commiserated even by
these boys! Well, I will change the topic. Aloud. There is current,
my dear boys, a report about what they call ‘Rāmāyaṇa’, a panegyric of
the Solar race, the outpouring of the exalted Vālmīki’s learning-and-
eloquence (Sarasvatī). I wish, therefore, out of curiosity, to hear some
part of it.
Kuśa—That entire story is [quite] familiar to us. Here, to begin with
(tāvat), are these two stanzas,¹ coming in a chapter at the end of the
‘Bālacharita’, that rise into my memory.
¹ The Calcutta recension of the Rāmāyaṇa the other recensions the readings differ.
gives these very stanzas near the end of See Notes.
the Bāla-kāṇḍa (Gorresio, i. 78¹³–¹⁵); in

91] Act VI, Princes Recognized — Translation [—vi. 36³
Rāma—Repeat [them], my dear boy.
Kuśa—“It was her nature that made Sītā dear unto Rāma’s mighty
heart; but she endeared herself all the more unto him by reason
of her [good] qualities. 31
So also was Rāma unto Sītā dearer than her very life: only their
heart knows the extent of each other’s affection.” 32
Rāma—Alas! Exceedingly cruel is this blow upon the very vitals of my
heart! Ha, Queen! So indeed it then was! Oh, how tormenting are
these affairs of the world—fraught¹ with capricious reverses [of fortune],
extremely painful, and all terminating in void phantoms!
Where now is that joy which, springing from an absolute [mutual]
confidence, knew no bounds? Where that mutual assiduousness
[for each other’s comfort], and where those fathomless charms
of novelty? In pleasure or in pain where indeed [can I now
find] that unison of hearts?—and yet this my cursed heart (prāṇa)
does continue to beat and will not cease! 33
Woe and alas!—
That period wherein were revealed to me, as in one flash, those
[hundreds and] thousands of my dear [Sītā’s] charms—of that
period beset with painful memories, the memory recurs to me
now. 34
For then, little by little, each succeeding day leaving its mark
upon them, the breasts of my fawn-eyed [Sītā] kept expanding
slowly like a bud; and then also it was that, strengthened by
the concord of our age and our love and our longings, the God
of Love had his opportunity (sphurati) to rage freely in our
hearts, but demurely in the outward-expression (vapushi). 35
Lava—Here is another stanza² addressed by the Lord of the Raghus unto
the Queen Sītā in the course of their pleasure-trip in the outskirts
[vana] of the Chitrakūṭa [mountain] close by the [river] Mandākinī.—
“As if set purposely for thee, here in front is this slab of stone;
all around it this kesara tree has rained as it were a rain of
flowers!” 36
Rāma, with a bashful smile and a mixture of love and pathos—Children
are indeed artlessly-simple, especially if they be forest-bred. Alas, Queen!
Dost thou remember what transports of unreserved endearments we did
then have? Alas, alas!
¹ Or, devoid of all real relations, positive or ² See Rāmāyaṇa, Bombay recension, the extra
negative. canto after ii. 95, stanzas 5–6.

vi. 37ᵃ—] Bhavabhūti — Uttara-Rāma-Charita [92
[Thy face] bedewed with the cooling drops of sweat and radiant
with thy moonlike forehead upon which thronged thy tresses as
they blew to the breezes wafted gently from over the Mandākinī
[river]—with thy cheeks glistening and [thy forehead] no longer
marked with the [wonted] kuṅkuma-spot¹—thy face gentle with
the mild curve of thy unadorned ears: it is as if I were seeing
it now vividly (utprekshyate) before me! 37
Remains stock-still [in meditation], with pathos. Alas, alas indeed!
After a long, long meditation, when one creates [in fancy] and
puts before him the image of his love, it is by no means the case
that such [an image], although [the actual object be] far off, does
not fill one with reassurance; but with the dissolution of that
[product of] imagination, the whole world becomes [once more]
a void wilderness, and thereafter, as if upon a heap of blazing
husks, the heart seems to be broiling! 38
[Voice,] behind the curtain—
Alarmed at the report of the boys' affray, Vasiṣṭha and Vālmīki
and the [widowed] Queens of Daśaratha, Janaka along with
Arundhatī: from the far distant hermitage they are in sooth all
coming hither, very slowly—their frames tottering with age, and
themselves slow with fatigue, but hurrying with their mind. 39
Rāma—How, the exalted Arundhatī and Vasiṣṭha and the Queen-mothers
and Janaka—are they all even here? Alas! How indeed can I meet
them [now]? Observing, and with pathos. Ha! That father[-in-law]
Janaka also should have come right hither—this is like the blow of
a thunderbolt to me, ill-starred that I am!
After having seen that union of father [Daśaratha] with [my]
father[-in-law Janaka] on that festive occasion of the marriage
of their children—[a marriage] approved by Vasiṣṭha and others,
all overjoyed at the desirableness of the connexion—after that,
why am I not torn to a thousand shreds as I, following upon
such a terrible disaster [to my wife], behold, in this his present
plight, Janaka, this friend of my father? 40
[Voice,] behind the curtain—Woe and alas!—
Upon seeing suddenly, in his present plight, the Lord of the
Raghus [Rāma], shorn of all his glory save his innate-majesty,
these sorrow-stricken Queen-mothers—after reviving Janaka who
¹ Saffron (kuṅkuma) forms the indispensable Respecting the incident as given in the
adornment of every married woman. In Rāmāyaṇa, see the Notes.
this case it was temporarily rubbed off.

93] Act VI, Princes Recognized — Translation [—vi. 42³
was the first to fall into a swoon—are themselves going into
a swoon! 41
Rāma—Alas, father! Alas, mothers!
Seeing that for her who was, of Janaka's and of Raghu's family,
the all-in-all of auspiciousness, I showed no compassion,—vain is
your [present] compassion for me! 42
I will go forthwith to attend upon them. Rises.
Kuśa and Lava—This way, this way, father!
All move about in pathetic flurry and exeunt.
END OF ACT VI
CALLED
PRINCES RECOGNIZED.

ACT VII
Then enters Lakshmaṇa.
Lakshmaṇa—Ho, my worthy Sirs! To-day the exalted Vālmīki, as ye
know (khalu), has summoned, along with ourselves, [our] subjects from
towns and districts, with all Brahmans and Kshatriyas; and he has also,
by his own [spiritual] power, secured the presence of hosts of Gods and
Demons, [Apes and other] animals, the Serpent-lords with their retinue:
in fact, the whole assemblage of Beings movable and immovable. And
I am directed by the noble [King, Rāma] as follows—"Dear Lakshmaṇa,
the exalted Vālmīki has invited us to witness his own play that is to be
enacted by heavenly nymphs. Go, therefore, to the banks of the Ganges,
which is to be the place for the concert, and seat the audience properly."—
I have accordingly assigned proper seats to all the assemblage of Beings
mortal and immortal. And here, now,—
Is the noble [King, Rāma] who, even while carrying on the life-
and-functions (āśrama) of royalty, has to follow the rigorous
course of a hermit’s life: he is coming hither out of deference
to [sage] Vālmīki. 1
Then enters Rāma.
Rāma—Dear Lakshmaṇa, have the distinguished spectators (prāśnika)
taken their seats?
Lakshmaṇa—They have.
Rāma—And those two boys—Kuśa and Lava—let them have accorded to
them a position similar to [that of] Prince Chandraketu.
Lakshmaṇa—Considering Your Lordship’s affection for them, that is just
what I have done. Here is spread out the Royal seat. Both sit down.
Rāma—Sirs, let the play begin.
Stage-manager, entering—The exalted son of Varuṇa, [Vālmīki,] truthful
in his utterances, thus commands the world movable and immovable—
“Here is what dawned upon us in our spiritual insight—a certain composi-
tion of ours pure-and-edifying and full of the Pathetic and the Marvellous
sentiments. Do you, therefore, because of the importance of the issue
[connected with it,] pay attention to the same.”

95] Act VII, Reunion — Translation [—vii. 3⁶
Rāma—The meaning is, that sages possess a direct intuition of what is
right (dharma). The knowledge of [such] exalted personages is uncoloured
by passions, is a Repository of Truth,¹ is never known to fail. It must
therefore be beyond [every possibility of] doubt.
[Voice,] behind the curtain—Alas, my noble Lord! Alas, dear Lakshmaṇa!
Alone and undefended as I am, and with these pangs of childbirth upon
me, in this [dreary] forest, the beasts of prey, desperate [with hunger], are
longing to devour me! Therefore now, ill-starred that I am, I will throw
myself into the Mandākinī [Ganges].
Lakshmaṇa, to himself—Woe and alas! This is something quite un-
expected!
Stage-manager—The daughter of the All-sustaining [Earth], Queen
Sītā, being abandoned by the King in the great forest: she, with
travail coming upon her, is throwing herself into the divine
Ganges. 2 Exit.
Rāma, excitedly—Queen, my Queen! Just tarry [but] one instant!
Lakshmaṇa—My noble brother, this is a play!
Rāma—Alas, Queen! Thou dear companion in the wilderness of Daṇḍakā!
This then has been the evil ripening of thy fate—and through Rāma!
Lakshmaṇa—Noble brother, let us, if you please, see how the play turns out.
Rāma—Here am I, ready and with a heart of adamant!
Then enters Sītā swooning and supported by Pṛithivī [the Earth] and
Jāhnavī [the Ganges], who have each an infant in their lap.
Rāma—Brother, lend me thy support: I seem to be plunging into some
unknown and untrodden [abyss of] gloom!
The two Goddesses [Pṛithivī and Bhāgīrathī]—
Take heart, [Sītā,] thou blessed daughter of [Janaka,] King of the
Videhas: Fortune is smiling upon thee. While in the waters
thou hast given birth to two sons that shall be the upholders of
Raghu's line. 3
Sītā, recovering—Oh, joy! I have given birth to [two] sons!—Ha, my
noble Lord! Swoons [again].
Lakshmaṇa, falling [at Rāma's feet]—I say, my noble brother, Fortune
is smiling upon us! The stock of Raghu has put forth glorious offshoots.
Observing. Oh, how now? Overwhelmed by the flood of stirring tears,
my noble brother has swooned quite away! Fans [him].
The two Goddesses—Cheer up, dear daughter, cheer up!
Sītā, recovering—Who may your Ladyship be—and you?
¹ A technical term of Yoga, for which see Notes.

vii. 3⁷—] Bhavabhūti — Uttara-Rāma-Charita [96
Pṛithivī—This is the Guardian-divinity of your father-in-law's house—
[the river] Bhāgīrathī.
Sītā—My homage unto thee, Exalted one!
Bhāgīrathī—Mayest thou attain all those blessings that thy [noble]
character [richly] merits!
Lakshmaṇa—We are [by this expression of goodwill mightily] favoured.
Bhāgīrathī—This is the Exalted [Goddess], the All-sustaining [Earth]:
thy mother.
Sītā—Alas, mother! That thou shouldst see me—and in such a plight!
Pṛithivī—Come, darling—Come [unto me], my daughter!
Embraces [Sītā] and faints.
Lakshmaṇa, in joy—So [happily] the noble Queen has been by Pṛithivī
and Bhāgīrathī taken under their protection.
Rāma, observing—It is indeed good—but it harrows me so!
Bhāgīrathī—Is even the all-sustaining Goddess [Earth] thus affected?
Then all-triumphant indeed is a mother's affection! Or rather [why do
I say so?]—Nobody that has any feelings at all can escape this [affection,
this] unending thread of the world-and-its-concerns (saṁsāra), this
mysterious knot of infatuation. My child, thou daughter of the King
of the Videhas! And thou Goddess [Earth] that art [thyself] the stay
unto all creatures! Take heart [both of you]; be comforted.
Pṛithivī, recovering—Goddess [Bhāgīrathī]! Being mother to Sītā, how
can I take heart?
First there was her long abode among the Rākshasas [with
Rāvaṇa], and, as a second [calamity], this her abandonment, most
dreadful [even] to hear:
Bhāgīrathī—But what being indeed is there—when Fate is intent
upon evolving its fruit—that can close the gates against it
[Fate]? 4
Pṛithivī—Bhāgīrathī, is this becoming—is this at all like dear Rāma?
No regard whatever has he shown to this [my Sītā's] hand,
clasped in her tender years by him in tender years—nor any
[regard] for me, nor for Janaka, nor for the Fire[-ordeal], nor
for [Sītā's] companionship [in the Daṇḍakā-forest], nor [finally]
for the continuance of [his own race]! 5
Sītā—Alas, my noble Lord! Of thee I am put in mind—
Pṛithivī—Forsooth! who now is thy noble Lord?
Sītā, abashed, with tears—So [be it then] as my mother says.
Rāma—Mother Pṛithivī, here am I, such [I confess, as thou sayest].

97] Act VII, Reunion — Translation [—vii. 8cd]
Bhāgīrathī—Exalted [Earth], thou Giver of all blessings! Thou art of
this living world its very body [and soul]. Wherefore then, as if not
cognizant [of facts], art thou wroth at [Rāma,] thy son-in-law?
A dread infamy was gaining ground among the people; and as
to that clearing [of Sītā] by the [ordeal of] fire, it took place
in the [distant] Island of Laṅkā [Ceylon]: how possibly could
the people of this place give credence to it? And it has always
been the precious heritage (dhana) of Ikshvāku's race to keep
the entire people content. In this trying extremity, therefore,
what [else] could my dear [Rāma] have done? 6
Lakshmaṇa—Divinities indeed possess an unerring intuitive vision in
regard to [the thoughts and motives of] all beings.
Bhāgīrathī—Nevertheless, here am I folding my hands in supplication
[and craving thy grace and pardon for Rāma].
Rāma—Holy mother [Bhāgīrathī], continual has been thy favour towards
[us] the descendants of Bhagīratha.
Pṛithivī—I am always favourably disposed towards you; but it was the
vehemence of my affection, [terrific] sudden and hard to withstand, [that
prompted those words of mine]. I am indeed not unaware of dear Rāma's
love to Sītā:
Constrained through Fate to abandon dear [Sītā], he [Rāma],
with that [keen torment] consuming his mind, has been kept
alive only by his own supernatural firmness (sattva), and by the
[pre-eminent] merits of his subjects. 7
Rāma—Indeed they have been full of tenderness for [me] their child—
these my gurus [Pṛithivī and Bhāgīrathī].
Sītā, weeping, with folded hands—Let my mother [Earth] receive me in
her bosom for eternal rest.
Rāma—What else could she ask?
Bhāgīrathī—God forbid! Mayest thou for thousands of years continue in
[the bloom of] thy life!
Pṛithivī—Child, these thy dear sons need to be looked after.
Sītā—What have I to do with these, now that I am without my Lord?
Rāma—Thou art of adamant, my heart!
Bhāgīrathī—How—thy Lord¹ still alive—canst thou be without a Lord?
Sītā—Luckless as I am, what does my Lord's being alive signify for me?
The two Goddesses—Being, as thou art, the source of all blessings to
the world, wherefore dost thou thus misprize thyself? Even we
ourselves, in thy company, feel an augmentation of our purity. 8
¹ The word for 'lord' or husband means also protector.
13 [H.O.S. 21]

vii. 8¹—] Bhavabhūti — Uttara-Rāma-Charita [98
Lakshmaṇa—Did you hear that, my noble brother?
Rāma—The people—let them hear. A tumult behind the curtain.
Rāma—Something yet more marvellous [is coming]!
Sītā—Why is it that the whole firmament seems ablaze?
The two Goddesses—We know:
Those very missiles of which Kṛiśāśva, [Viśvāmitra] the son of
Kuśika, and Rāma were in turn the masters,—those missiles that
produce stupor—are appearing! 9
[Voice,] behind the curtain—All hail, Queen Sītā! It is before thy
sons that we have to present ourselves; as was said—in the
course of seeing those pictures—by the noble descendant of
Raghu [Rāma]. 10
Sītā—So, happily, these are the Deities of the missiles: Ha, my noble
Lord, thy favours continue unabated even now!
Lakshmaṇa—My noble brother had then said [unto Sītā], 'Assuredly now
these will attend upon thy offspring.'¹
The two Goddesses—Our homage unto you, ye mighty missiles!
Blessed are we in this your favour: Be pleased to reveal yourselves
whenever they [the boys] shall meditate upon you; and may these
our dear sons prosper under your favour! 11
Rāma—These surging billows of grief—broken by the mingling
[floods] of joy and wonder—they have really thrown me now
into an inexplicable state of mind! 12
The two Goddesses—Rejoice, child! For now have thy sons become the
equals of our dear Rāma.
Sītā—But who, exalted [Goddess], will now do for them the rites befitting
a Kshatriya?
Rāma—This one now, the maintainer of that line of the Raghus which
claims to be under Vasishṭha's protection; alas, even she—Sītā—
is at a loss to find some one who shall give unto her sons the
sacraments and befitting education! 13
Bhāgīrathī—My child, why this anxiety? For, as soon as they are
weaned, I shall deliver them into the exalted Vālmīki's hands. He will
do all that needs to be done for them as Kshatriyas:
As are the sages Vasishṭha and Āṅgirasa, even so is the [saintly]
son of Varuṇa, [Vālmīki,] the guru of both the families, that of
Janaka and that of Raghu. 14
Rāma—A happy thought this of the exalted [Bhāgīrathī].
Lakshmaṇa—Noble brother, to tell the truth, I am really led to surmise,
¹ See p. 19, above.

99] Act VII, Reunion — Translation [—vii. 17cd
by these indications, that these [two infants] [represent] our Kuśa and
Lava:
For they also [the real Kuśa and Lava] have the missiles manifest
to them from their birth, and they have both received the sacra-
ments at the hands of the saintly son of Varuṇa [Vālmīki]; they
are heroes, and in age are [just] twelve years. 15
Rāma—Dear [Lakṣmaṇa], it is even for this very reason that my heart
is adrift and I am lost in bewilderment.
Pṛithivī—Come, daughter, sanctify [with thy presence] my abode in
Rasātala.¹
Sītā—[Rather] let my mother [Earth] receive me in her bosom [for eternal
rest]: I can no longer endure the vicissitudes of this world of mortals.
Rāma—What will the answer be now?
Pṛithivī—Child, follow my behest and look to the needs of thy sons until
they are weaned. But after that—as shall seem good.
Bhāgīrathī—That is right.
Exeunt Ganges, Earth, and Sītā.
Rāma—How? Has the daughter of the King of the Videhas really found
the rest eternal? Alas, Queen! Thou dear companion of my residence in
the Daṇḍakā, thou divine embodiment of Virtue! Art thou then departed
for the other world? Faints.
Lakṣmaṇa—Help, help, Exalted Vālmīki! Is this your Poem's end-and-
aim? ²
[Voice,] behind the curtain—Let the concert[-instruments] be removed.
Hark ye, all living beings—ye mortals movable and immovable! Behold
the holy miracle that Vālmīki permits to happen.
Lakṣmaṇa, observing—As if by some churning, the waters of the
Ganges are in agitation; the skies are thronged with Gods and
sages: and, oh wonder!—the noble [Sītā], along with the Goddesses
Pṛithivī and Bhāgīrathī, is rising from the waters. 16
[Voice,] behind the curtain—O Arundhatī, world-honoured! Deign
to accept the greetings of us [two], Pṛithivī and Bhāgīrathī: into
thy charge we here deliver this Sītā, her of holy life, our
daughter. 17

¹ Rasātala = Nether world. A distinction is apparently intended between 'staying with Pṛithivī in her abode' and 'being received into her bosom to rise up no more'. See Notes, however.
² Lakṣmaṇa means, 'Was this your motive, Vālmīki, in inviting us to the play, namely, just to see Rāma faint?' There is perhaps also the suggestion, on the part of Bhavabhūti, that the tragic ending of the Rāmāyaṇa, as we have it, is not fitting for such a poem, and that it should end happily, as does the present play. See also Introduction, § 21, and note.
13* [H.O.S. 21]

vii. 17¹—] Bhavabhūti — Uttara-Rāma-Charita [100
Lakshmaṇa—Oh, joy and wonder! Behold, behold, my noble brother!
Observing. Woe and alas! He has not even yet recovered his breath!
Then enter Arundhatī and Sītā.
Arundhatī—Haste, child, thou daughter of Videha's king! Away
with this thy bashfulness! Come and revive my dear [Rāma]
with thy hand, the touch of which is [so] dear [to him]. 18
Sītā, in flurry, touching Rāma—Let my noble Lord revive, and compose
himself.
Rāma, reviving, in joy—Oh, what can this be? Observing, with joyful
astonishment. Is it possible? my Queen! In confusion. Oh, and mother
Arundhatī—and Ṛishyaśṛiṅga and Śāntā and all our other gurus, all
beaming with joy!
Arundhatī—Dear [Rāma], here is the exalted Ganges, the Presiding-
divinity of the house of Bhagīratha;¹ she is gracious [towards thee].
[Voice,] behind the curtain—Dear Rāma, Lord of the world, call to mind
what thou saidst to me² when looking at the pictures: [Thou didst then
say—] ‘Be thou, therefore, O [divine] mother, towards this thy daughter-
in-law, Sītā, ever cherishing kindly thoughts—even like unto Arundhatī
[herself].’ I have acquitted myself of my duty therein.
Arundhatī—And here is thy mother-in-law, the exalted giver of all blessings
[the Earth].
[Voice,] behind the curtain—The long-lived one [Rāma] had said³ formerly,
when abandoning Sītā—‘O holy [Earth, thou] Giver of all blessings! This
thy virtuous daughter do thou regard with kindness—this daughter of
Janaka!’ So now I have, O Lord [of men], carried out thy words with
regard to my daughter [Sītā].
Rāma—How! Guilty of grievous offence though Rāma has been, have the
exalted [Goddesses really] shown him their favour [and sympathy]?
Salutes [them].
Arundhatī—Ye people from the city and from the country! Considering
that Pṛithivī and Bhāgīrathī have now [in your presence] commended her
and entrusted her to me, Arundhatī, and that formerly the holy Fire had
attested to her spotless character and Brahmā and all other Gods applauded
her—will you now accept [as your Queen] her, who is the dutiful daughter-
in-law of the Solar race and who is sprung from the [very] sacrificial
ground of the Gods? What do you, my worthy Sirs, think in regard
to this?
¹ For Bhagīratha, see note 6, p. 21. ³ See above, p. 29, near end.
² See above, p. 22, near the top.

101] Act VII, Reunion — Translation [—vii. 19¹⁷
Lakshmaṇa—Thus reproved by the noble Arundhatī, these our subjects,
as also these assembled Beings, one and all, are saluting the noble [Queen],
while the Guardians of the world and the seven sages are honouring her
with a shower of blossoms.
Arundhatī—Lord of the world! My dear Rāma!—
This thy dear [and dutiful Sītā]: employ her now—as the rites
demand—to participate in the religious offices connected with
the sacrifice—her who is the holy [and living] original of that
image of gold. 19
Sītā, to herself—My noble Lord knows how to wipe off Sītā's sorrows.
Rāma—As the exalted [Arundhatī] commands.
Lakshmaṇa—Now have I gained the one wish of my heart!
Sītā—This is life to me!
Lakshmaṇa—Noble Queen, here salutes thee that shameless Lakshmaṇa.
Sītā—Just as thou art, dear [brother], long mayest thou live!
Arundhatī—Exalted Vālmīki, bring forward now, unto [our] dear Rāma,
those two sons of Sītā, Kuśa and Lava. Exit.¹
Rāma and Lakshmaṇa—Oh, joy! It is as we thought.
Sītā, with tears, and agitated—Where, where are my darlings?
Then enters Vālmīki [leading] Kuśa and Lava.
Vālmīki—Kuśa, Lava, my boys! This is the Lord of the Raghus—your
father; this is Lakshmaṇa, your worthy uncle; this is Queen Sītā who
gave you birth: this is the Royal sage Janaka, your mother's father.
Sītā, observing, with joy and sorrow and amazement—How! My father
[Janaka—and here]!
Kuśa and Lava—Oh, father! Oh, mother! Oh, grandfather!
Rāma, embracing [them] joyfully—Why, my dear boys! It must be
through our [special] merit that you have been restored unto us!
¹ There is no apparent reason for this exit The account Lava gives, in Act iv,
unless it was the special object of the of Vālmīki's preparation for the play
poet to leave Vālmīki, as the one highest within the play in Act vii sounds
personage then on the stage, to pronounce almost as a leaf from our poet's auto-
the concluding benediction. In a sense, biography. We further know that in
it is proper that Vālmīki should pro- later times (cp. Rājaśekhara's Bāla-
nounce the benediction, but it is a bit Rāmāyaṇa, Prologue, stanza 16) Bhava-
odd, particularly as the last stanza con- bhūti was regarded as an avatar of
tains a flattering allusion to Vālmīki's Vālmīki. May we, therefore, conclude
own poem. that Bhavabhūti himself played the part
Now we know that Bhavabhūti was of Vālmīki, and came in, just at the end,
on most intimate terms (cp. Prologue to make his courtesy to the audience and
to Mālatī-Mādhava) with the actors. receive their plaudits?

vii. 19¹⁸—] Bhavabhūti — Uttara-Rāma-Charita [102
Sītā—Come, dear Kuśa! Come, dear Lava! Give a long, long embrace to
this your mother, who has [as it were] been born again.
Kuśa and Lava, having done so—We are blessed [to-day]!
Sītā—Exalted Sir, my obeisance!
Vālmīki—My dear child! Thus, oh thus [united to thy Lord and thy
sons] mayest thou long continue!
Sītā—Oh, joy! Here now is my father, [our] family preceptors [Vasishṭha
and Vālmīki], these honoured ladies [my mothers-in-law and the exalted
Arundhatī], queen Śāntā with her husband [Ṛishyaśṛiṅga], as also these
feet of my noble and gracious Lord, together with Lakshmaṇa and Kuśa
and Lava: As I see all these together I am transported with joy!
Tumult behind the curtain.
Vālmīki, rising and observing—Having extirpated the demon Lavaṇa, this
is [Śatrughna] the Lord of Mathurā approaching.¹
Lakshmaṇa—Blessings bring blessings in their train.
Rāma—Although experiencing all this, I cannot yet believe it: this,
however, is in the nature of all wished-for blessings! ²
Vālmīki—Say, my dear Rāma, what further good can I render thee?
Rāma—Beyond all this, can there be any further good? Let there be this,
however—
This story which—even like the Mother of all creation [Earth]
or like the [river] Ganges—cleanses from [all] sins and augments
[every] blessing; [this story] which is full of auspiciousness and
which captivates the heart: may the wise hold in esteem this
[same] story which is here put together in a dramatic form, and
which is the composition (vāṇī) of a Poet ³ of matured genius
and conversant with Brahma-in-the-form-of-the-Word! 20
Exeunt all.
END OF ACT VII
CALLED
REUNION.
END OF THE PLAY.
¹ Cp. Notes to i. 50. ³ Vālmīki; but there is also a secondary
² . Mālatī-Mādhava, vi. 9¹⁵. reference to Bhavabhūti himself.

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