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Dasharatha (Sanskrit: दशरथ, IAST Daśaratha) is the father of Rama, the heroic prince and avatar of Vishnu in the Hindu epic Ramayana. Within the tale Dasharatha was the king of Ayodhya and a descendant of Raghuvamsa. He had three wives, Kaushalya, Sumitra and Kaikeyi. The son of Kaushalya was Rama, sons of Sumitra were Lakshman and Shatrughna and the son of Kaikeyi was Bharata. He and Kaushalya were also the parents of Shanta, wife of Ekashringa.
[edit] In the Ramayana
Four key events in the Ramayana stand out in the life of Dasharatha:
- On hearing the great tales of Dasharatha, the demon king Ravana - whose ambition was to rule the three worlds - was filled with envy and sent messengers to the court of Dasharatha asking the king to pay homage and tribute to Ravana or face war. Dasharatha shot off arrows and told the messengers that, on their return, they would find the gates of Ravana's capital Lanka fastened shut by the arrows. When Ravana felt ashamed of his defeat, the arrows would fly back to Ayodhya. Knowing that Dasharatha was superior to him, Ravana undertook intense tapas (penances) to seek the favor of Lord Brahma. When Lord Brahma appeared in front of him, Ravana asked "Lord! Bless me with this gift of Grace: let no child be born from the loins of Dasharatha"[1]
- Dasharatha was famous for his ability to hunt blind, by sound alone. During one of his hunting expeditions, he heard a noise resembling an elephant drinking water, and shot an arrow in the direction. To his chagrin, he found that he had instead shot a young boy called Sravana Kumar who was collecting water to quench the thirst of his blind parents. Sravana used to carry his parents everywhere on two pans of a balance supported on his shoulders. They were completely dependent on the boy and Sravana was inconsolable at the thought that they would be left without anybody to protect them. As his dying wish, he requested the King to carry the water to his parents. The old couple drank the water, not knowing that it was not being offered by their son. The king hesitantly, narrated the incident to them. In his grief, the old father cursed the king that he too would one day suffer putrasoka (grief of separation from one's progeny) just like they were suffering. The old couple then gave up their lives, not wanting to live after consuming water offered by their son's killer.
- Dasharatha fought on the side of the Devas in a battle against the Asuras, with Kaikeyi as his charioteer. During the battle, Kaikeyi saved her husband's life. Touched by this, Dasharatha promised to grant Kaikeyi two boons when she wished to avail of them.
- These incidents in Dasharatha's life played havoc in the future course of events. After overcoming Ravana's curse by performing the horse sacrifice to obtain children, Dasharatha was blessed with four sons. When the boys were grown, Dasharatha decided to retire and anoint Rama, the eldest, the crown prince. But before the ceremony took place, the ambitious Kaikeyi asked him to make good the old promise. She demanded for the first boon that her son Bharata be crowned king instead of Rama, and for the second that Rama leave Ayodhya and live in exile for 14 years. The helpless king had to agree to her demands because as a Kshatriya by Dharma, he could not go back on his word. The dejected Dasharatha died of grief not long after Rama had gone into exile, unable to withstand the anguish of separation from his son. This fulfilled the curse of Sravana's father.
[edit] References
- ^ (2002) Ramakatha Rasavahini. Prasanthi Nilayam: Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust. ISBN 8172081324.
