There creeping things in every form Infest the earth, the serpents swarm, And each proud eye with fury glows: The wood, my love, is full of woes.
The snakes that by the rives hide In sinuous course like rivers glide, And line the path with deadly foes: The wood, my love, is full of woes.
Scorpions, and grasshoppers, and flies Disturb the wanderer as he lies.
And wake him from his troubled doze: The wood, my love, is full of woes.
Trees, thorny bushes, intertwined, Their branches' ends together bind, And dense with grass the thicket grows: The wood, my dear, is full of woes, With many ills the flesh is tried, When these and countless fears beside Vex those who in the wood remain: The wilds are naught but grief and pain. Hope, anger must be cast aside, To penance eveiy thought applied; No fear must be of things to fear: Hence is the wood for ever drear. Enough, my love: thy purpose quit: For forest life thou art not fit. As thus I think on all, I see The wild wood is no place for thee.'
CANTO XXIX.
SrTA',S APPEAL.
Thus Rama spake. Her lord's address The lady heard with deep distress, And, as the tear bedimmed her eye, In soft low accents made reply: ' The perils of the wood, and all The woes thou countest to appal, Led by my love I deem not pain; Each woe a charm, each loss a gain.
Tiger, and elephant, and deer, Bull, lion, buffalo, in fear, Soon as thy matchless form they see, With every silvan beast will flee.
With thee, O Rama, I must go: My sire's command ordains it so.
Bereft of thee, my lonely heart Must break, and life and I must part.
While thou, O mighty lord, art nigh, Not even He who rules the sky, Though He is strongest of the strong, With all his might can do me wrong.
Nor can a lonely woman left By her dear husband live bereft.
In my great love, my lord, I ween, The truth of this thou mayst have seen.
In my sire's palace long ago 1 heard the chief of those who know, The truth-declaring Brahmans, tell My fortune, in the wood to dwell.
I heard their promise who divine The future by each mark and sign, And from that hour have longed to lead The forest life their lips decreed.
Now, mighty Rama, I must share Thy father's doom which sends thee there; In this I will not be denied, But follow, love, where thou shalt guide.
0 husband, I will go with thee, Obedient to that high decree.
Now let the Brahmans' words be true, For this the time they had in view.
1 know full well the wood has woes; But they disturb the lives of those Who in "the forest dwell, nor hold Their rebel senses well controlled.
Canto XXX.
THE RAM AY AN.
In my sire's halls, ere I was wed, I heard a dame who begged her bread Before my mother's face relate What griefs a forest life await.
And many a time in sport I prayed To seek with thee the greenwood shade, For O, my heart on this is set, To follow thee, dear anchoret.
May blessings on thy life attend: I long with thee my steps to bend, For with such hero as thou art This pilgrimage enchants my heart Still close, my lord, to thy dear side My spirit will be punned: Love from all sin my soul will free; My husband is a God to me.
So, love, with thee shall I have bliss And share the life that follows this.
I heard a Brahman, dear to fame, This ancient Scripture text proclaim: ' The woman whom on earth below Her parents on a man bestow, And lawfully their hands unite With water and each holy rite, She in this world shall be his wife, His also in the after life.'
Then tell me, O beloved, why Thou wilt this earnest prayer deny, Nor take me with thee to the wood, Thine own dear wife so true and good.
But if thou wilt not take me there Thus grieving in my wild despair, To fire or water I will fly, Or to the poisoned draught, and die.'
So thus to share his exile, she Besought him with each earnest plea, Nor could she yet her lord persuade To take her to the lonely shade. The answer of the strong-armed chief Smote the Videhan's soul with grief, And from her eyes the torrents came Bathing the bosom of the dame.
CANTO XXX.
THE TRIUMPH OF LOVE.
The daughter of Videha's king, While Rama strove to soothe the sting Of her deep anguish, thus began Once more in furtherance of her plan: And with her spirit sorely tried By fear and anger, love and pride, With keenly taunting words addressed Her hero of the stately breast: ' Why did the king my sire, who reigns O'er fair Videha's wide domains, Hail Rama son with joy unwise, A woman in a man's disguise?
Now falsely would the people say, By idle fancies led astray, That Rama's own are power and might, As glorious as the Lord of Light. Why sinkest thou in such dismay? What fears upon thy spirit weigh, That thou, O Rama, fain wouldst flee From her who thinks of naught but thee? To thy dear will am I resigned In heart and body, soul and mind, As Savitri gave all to one, Satyavan, Dyumatsena's son.1 Not e'en in fancy can I brook To any guard save thee to look: Let meaner wives their houses shame, To go with thee is all my claim. Like some low actor, deemst thou fit Thy wife to others to commit— Thine own, espoused in maiden youth, Thy wife so long, unblamed for truth 1 Do thou, my lord, his will obey For whom thou losest royal sway, To whom thou wouldst thy wife confide-* Not me, but thee, his wish may guide. Thou must not here thy wife forsake, And to the wood thy journey make, Whether stern penance, grief, and care, Or rule or heaven await thee there. Nor shall fatigue my limbs distress When wandering in the wilderness: Each path which near to thee I tread Shall seem a soft luxurious bed. The reeds, the bushes where I pass, The thorny trees, the tangled grass Shall feel, if only thou be near, Soft to my touch as skins of deer. When the rude wind in fury blows, And scattered dust upon me throws, That dust, beloved lord, to me Shall as the precious sandal be. And what shall be more blest than I, When gazing on the wood I lie In some green glade upon a bed With sacred grass beneath us spread? The root, the leaf, the fruit which thou Shalt give me from the earth or bough, Scanty or plentiful, to eat, Shall taste to me as Amrit sweet. As there I live on flowers and roots And every season's kindly fruits, I will not for my mother grieve, My sire, my home, or all I leave. My presence, love, shall never add One pain to make thy heart more sad; 1 The story of Savitri, told in the Maha- bharat, has been admirably translated by Riickert, and elegantly epitomized by Mrs. Manning in India, Ancient and Mediaeval, There is a free rendering of the story in Idylls from the Sanskrit* THE RAM AY AN.
Boole II.
I will not cause thee grief or care, Nor be a burden hard to bear. With thee is heaven, where'er the spot; Each place is hell where thou art not. Then go with me, O Rama: this Is all my hope and all my bliss. If thou wilt leave thy wife who still Entreats thee with undaunted will, This very day shall poison close The life that spurns the rule of foes. How, after, can my soul sustain The bitter life of endless pain, When thy dear face, my lord, I miss? No, death is better far than this, Not for an hour could I endure The deadly grief that knows not cure, Far less a woe I could not shun For ten long years, and three, and one.' While tires of woe consumed her, such Her sad appeal, lamenting much; Then with a wild cry, anguish -wrung, About her husband's neck she olung. Like some she-elephant who bleeds Struck by the hunter's venomed reeds, So in her quivering heart she felt The many wounds his speeches dealt. Then, as the spark from wood is gained,1 Down rolled the tear so long restrained: The crystal moisture, sprung from woe, From her sweet eyes began to flow, As runs the water from a pair Of lotuses divinely fair. And Sita's face with long dark eyes, Pure as the moon of autumn skies, Faded with weeping, as the buds Of lotuses when sink the floods.
Around his wife his arms he strained, Who senseless from her woe remained, And with sweet words, that bade her wake To life again, the hero spake: * I would not with thy woe, my Queen, Buy heaven and all its blissful sheen. Void of all fear am 1 as He, The self -existent God, can be. I knew not all thy heart till now, Dear lady of the lovely brow So wished not thee in woods to dwell; Yet there mine arm can guard thee well. Now surely thou, dear love, wast made To dwell with me in green wood shade. And, as a high saint's tender mind Clings to its love for all mankind, So I to thee will ever cling, Sweet daughter of Videha's king. The good, of old, 0 soft of frame, Honoured this duty's sovereign claim, And I its guidance will not shun, True as light's Queen is to the Sun, 1 Fire f orsacrificial purposes is produced by the attrition of two pieces of wood, T cannot, pride of Janak's line, This journey to the wood decline: My sire's behest, the oath he sware, The claims of truth, all lead me there.
One duty, dear the same for aye, Is sire and mother to obey: Should I their orders once transgress My very life were weariness.
If glad obedience be denied To father, mother, holy guide, What rites, what service can be done That stern Fate's favour may be won?
These three the triple world comprise, O darling of the lovely eyes.
Earth has nb holy thing like these Whom with all love men seek to please.
Not truth, or gift, or bended knee, Not honour, worship, lordly fee, Storms heaven and wins a blessing thence Like sonly love and reverence.
Heaven, riches, grain, and varied lore, With sons and many a blessing more, All these are made their own with ease By those their elders' souls who please.
The mighty-souled, who ne'er forget, Devoted sons, their filial debt, Win worlds where Gods and minstrels are, And Brahma's sphere more glorious far.
Now as the orders of my sire, Who keeps the way of truth, require, So will I do, for such the way Of duty that endures for aye: To take thee, love, to Dandak's wild My heart at length is reconciled, For thee such earnest thoughts impel To follow, and with me to dwell.
0 faultless form from feet to brows, Come with me, as my will allows, And duty there with me pursue, Trembler, whose bright eyes thrill me through.
In all thy days, come good come ill, Preserve unchanged such noble will, And thou, dear love, wilt ever be The glory of thy house and me. Now, beauteous-armed, begin the tasks The woodland life of hermits asks. For me the joys of heaven above Have charms no more without thee, love. And now, dear Sita, be not slow: Food on good mendicants bestow, And for the holy Brahmans bring Thy treasures and each precious thing. Thy best attire and gems collect, The jewels which thy beauty decked, And every ornament and toy Prepared for hours of sport and joy: The beds, the cars wherein I ride, Among our followers, next, divide.'
She conscious that her lord approved Her going, with great rapture moved, Canto XXXI.
THE RAM AY AN.
Hastened within, without delay, Prepared to give their wealth away, CANTO XXXI.
LAKSHMAN'S PRAYER.
When Lakshman, who had joined them there, Had heard the converse of the pair, His mien was changed, his eyes overflowed, His breast no more could bear its load. The son of Raghu, sore distressed, His brother's feet with fervour pressed, While thus to Sita he complained, And him by lofty vows enchained: * If thou wilt make the woods thy home, Where elephant and roebuck roam, I too this day will take my bow And in the path before thee go.
Our way will lie through forest ground Where countless birds and beasts are found.
I heed not homes of Gods on high, I heed not life that cannot die, Nor would I wish, with thee away, O'er the three worlds to stretch my sway.'
Thus Lakshman spake, with earnest prayer His brother's woodland life to share. As Rama still his prayer denied With soothing words, again he cried: 'When leave at first thou didst accord, Why dost thou stay me now, my lord? Thou art my refuge: 0, be kind, Leave me not, dear my lord, behind. Thou canst not, brother, if thou choose That I still live, my wish refuse.'
The glorious chief his speech renewed To faithful Lakshman as he sued, And on the eyes of Rarna gazed Longing to lead, with hands upraised: * Thou art a hero just and dear, Whose steps to virtue's path adhere, Loved as my life till life shall end, My faithful brother and my friend. If to the woods thou take thy way With Sita and with me to-day, Who for Kausalya will provide, And guard the good Sumitra's side? The lord of earth, of mighty power, Who sends good things in plenteous shower. As Indra pours the grateful rain, A captive lies in passion's chain. The power imperial for her son ; Has As vapati's daughter1 won, • And she, proud queen, will little heed Her miserable rivals' need.
Kaikeyi.
So Bharat, ruler of the land, By Queen Kaikeyi's side will stand, Nor of those two will ever think, While grieving in despair they sink. Now, Lakshman, as thy love decrees, Or else the monarch's heart to please, Follow this counsel and protect My honoured mother from neglect. So thou, while not to me alone 'hy great affection will be shown, ^o highest duty wilt adhere *y serving those thou shouldst revere, tfow, son of Raghu, for my sake Obey this one request I make, Or, of her darling son bereft, Kausalya has no comfort left.'
The faithful Lakshman, thus addressed n gentle words which love expressed, L'o him in lore of language learned, rlis answer, eloquent, returned: ' Nay, through thy might each queen will share Attentive Bharat's love and care. Should Bharat, raised as king to sway This noblest realm, his trust betray, N"or for their safety well provide, Seduced by ill-suggesting pride, Doubt not rny vengeful hand shall kill The cruel wretch who counsels ill — Kill him and all who lend him aid, And the three worlds in league arrayed. And good Kausalya well can fee A thousand champions like to me. A thousand hamlets rich in grain The station of that queen maintain. She may, and my dear mother too, Live on this ample revenue. Then let me follow thee: herein: Is naught that may resemble sin. So shall I in my wish succeed, And aid, perhaps, my brother's need. My bow and quiver well supplied With arrows hanging at my side, My hands shall spade and basket bear, And for thy feet the way prepare. I'll bring thee roots and berries sweet, And woodland fare which hermits eat. Thou shalt with thy Videhan spouse Recline upon the mountain's brows; Be mine the toil, be mine to keep Watch o'er thee waking or asleep.'
Filled by his speech with joy and pride* Rama to Lakshman thus replied: ' Go then, my brother, bid adieu To all thy friends and retinue. And those two bows of fearful might, Celestial, which, at that famed rite, Lord Varun gave to Janak, king Of fair Vedeha, with thee bring, With heavenly coats of sword-proof mail, Quivers, whoae arrows never fail, THE RAM A? AN.
Boole IT.
And golden-hilted swords so keen, The rivals of the sun in sheen. Tended with care these arms are all Preserved in my preceptor's hall. With speed, O Lakshman, go, produce, And bring them hither for our use.' So on a woodland life intent, To see his faithful friends he went, And brought the heavenly arms which lay By Rama's teacher stored away. And Raghu's son to Rama showed Those wondrous arms which gleamed and glowed, Well kept, adorned with many a wreath Of flowers on case, and hilt, and sheath. The prudent Kama at the sight Addressed his brother with delight: ' Well art thou come, my brother dear. For much I longed to see thee here. For with thine aid, before I go, I would my gold and wealth bestow Upon the Brahmans sage, who school Their lives by stern devotion's rule. Arid for all those who ever dwell Within my house and serve me well, Devoted servants, true and good, Will I provide a livelihood.
Quick, go and summon to this place The good Vasishtha's son, Suyajna, of the Brahman race The h'rst and holiest one, To all the Brahmans wise and good Will I due reverence pay, Then to the solitary wood With thee will take my way.'
CANTO XXXII.
THE GIFT OF THE TREASURES, That speech so noble which conveyed His friendty wish, the chief obeyed. With steps made swift by anxious thought The wise Suyajna's home he sought. Him in the hall of Fire1 he found, And bent before him to the ground: * O friend, to Rama's house return, Who now performs a task most stern.' He, when his noonday rites were done, Went forth with fair'Sumitra's son, And came to Rama's bright abode Kich in the love which Lakshmi showed. The son of Raghu, with his dame. With joined hands met him as he came, Showing to him who Scripture knew The worship that is Agni's due.
1 The chapel where the sacred lire used in worship ia kept.
With armlets, bracelets, collars, rings, With costly pearls on golden strings. With many a gem for neck and limb The son of Raghu honoured him. Then Rama, at his wife's request, The wise Suyajna thus addressed*: ' Accept a necklace too to deck With golden strings thy spouse's neck. And Sita here, my friend, were glad A girdle to her gift to add. And many a bracelet wrought with care, And many an armlet rich and rare, My wife to thine is fain to give, Departing in the wood to live. A bed by skilful workmen made, With gold and various gema inlaid — This too, before she goen. would she Present, O saintly friend, to thee. Thine be my elephant, so famed, My uncle's present, Victor named; And let a thousand coins of gold, Great Brahman, with the gift be told.' Thus Rama spoke: nor he declined The noble gifts for him designed. On Rama, Lakshman, Sita he Invoked all high felicity.
In pleasant words then Rama gave His best to Lakshmau prompt and brave, As Brahma speaks for Him to hear Who rules the Gods' celestial sphere: ' To the two best of Brahmans run; Agastya bring, and Kusik's son, And precious gifts upon them rain, Like fostering floods upon the grain. O long-armed Prince of Raghu's line, Delight them with a thousand kine, And many a fair and costly gem, With gold and silver, give to them. To him. so deep in Scripture, who, To Queen Kausalya ever true, Serves her with blessing and respect, Chief of the Taittiriya sect1 — To him, with women-slaves, present A chariot rich with ornament, And costly robes of silk beside, Until the sage be satisfied. On Chitraratha, true and dear, My tuneful bard and charioteer, Gems, robes, and plenteous wealth confer—- Mine ancient friend and minister. And these who go with staff in hand, Grrammariaus trained, a numerous band, Who their deep study only prize, STor think of other exercise, Who toil not, loving dainty fare, Whose praises e'en the good declare — On these be eighty cars bestowed. And each with precious treasures load.
1 The students amd teachers of the Tait- iriya portion of the Yajur Veda, Canto xxxnr.
THE RAM AY AN.
A thousand bulls for them suffice, Two hundred elephants of price, And let a thousand kine beside The dainties of each meal nrov7ide. The throng who sacred gi rales wear, And on Kausalya wait with care- A thousand golden coins shall please, Son of Sumitra, each of these. Let all, dear Lakshman. of the train These special gifts of honour gain; IVIy mother will rejoice to know Her Brahmans have been cherished so.'
Then Raghu's son addressed the crowd Who round him stood and wept aloud, When he to all who thronged the court Had dealt his wealth for their support: * In Lakshman's house and mine remain, And guard them till I come again.'
To all his people sad with grief, In loving words thus spoke their chief, Then bade his treasure-keeper bring Gold, silver, and each precious thing. Then straight the servants went and bore Back to their chief the wealth in store, Before the people's eyes it shone, A glorius pile to look upon. The prince of men with Lakshman's aid Parted the treasures there displayed, Gave to the poor, the young, the old, And twice-born men, the gems and gold.
A Brahman, long in evil case, Named Trijat, born of Garga's race, Earned ever toiling in a wood With spade and plough his livelihood. The youthful wife, his babes who bore, Their indigence felt more and more. Thus to the aged man she spake: * Hear this my word: my counsel take. Come, throw thy spade and plough away; To virtuous Rain a go to-day, And somewhat of his kindness pray.' He heard the words she spoke: around His limbs his ragged cloth he wound, And took his journey by the road That led to Rama's fair abode.
To the fifth court he made his way; Nor met the Brahman check or stay, Brighu, Angiras1 could not be Brighter with saintly light than he.
To Rama's presence on he pressed, i And thus the noble chief addressed: * O Rama, poor and weak am I, And many children round me cry. Scant living in the woods I earn: On me thine eye of pity turn.' And Rama, bent on sport and jest, The suppliant Brahman thus addressed: 0 aged man, one thousand kine, fet undistributed, are mine.
?he cows on thee will I bestow As far as thou thy staff canst throw.' The Brahman heard. In eager haste Ie bound his cloth around his waist.
Then round his head his staff he whirled, And forth with mightiest effort hurled.
Dast from his hand it flew, and sank To earth on Sarju's farther bank, Vhere herds of kine in thousands fed ^ear to the well -stocked bullock shed. And all the cows that wandered o'er The meadow, far as Sarju's shore, At Ramas word the herdsmen drove L'o Trijat's cottage in the grove.
ile drew the Brahman to his breast, And thus with calming words addressed: Now be not angry, Sire, I pray: This jest of mine was meant in play. These thousand kine, but not alone. Their herdsmen too, are all thine own. And wealth beside I give thee: speak, Thine shall be all thy heart can seek.' Thus Rama spake. And Trijat prayed For means his sacrifice to aid.
And Rarna gave much wealth, required To speed his offering as desired, CANTO XXXIII.
1 Two of the ten divine personages calle< Prajdpatis and Brakmddikas who wer first created by Brahma.
THE PEOPLE'S LAMENT.
Thus Sita and the princes brave Much wealth to all the Brahmans gave Then to the monarch's house the three Went forth the aged king to see.
The princes from two servants took Those heavenly arms of glorious look, Adorned with garland and with band By Sita's beautifying hand.
On each high house a mournful throng Had gathered ere they passed along, Who gazed in pure unselfish woe From, turret, roof, and portico.
So dense the crowd that blocked the ways, The rest, unable there to gaze.
Were fain each terrace to ascend, And thence their eyes on Kama bend.
Then as the gathered multitude On foot their well-loved R&ma viewed, No royal shade to screen his head, Such words, disturbed by grief, they said: 1 0 look, our hero, wont to ride Leading a host in perfect pride — Now Lakshman, sole of all his friends, With Sitd on his steps attends.
Though he has known the sweets of power, And poured his gifts in liberal shower, From duty's path he waH not swerve, THE RAM AY AN.
Book II.
But still his father's truth preserve. And she whose form so soft ami fair Was veiled from spirits of the air. Now walks unsheltered from the day, Seen by the crowds who throng the way. Ah, for that gently-nurtured form! How will it fade with sun and storm! How will the rain, the cold, the heat Mar fragrant breast and tinted feet! 'Surely some demon has possessed His sire, and speaks within his breast, Or how could one that is a king Thus send his dear son wandering? It were a deed unkindly done To banish e'en a worthless son: But what, when his pure life has gained Ihe hearts of all, by love enchained? Six sovereign virtues join to grace Kama the foremost of his race: Tender and kind and pure is he, Docile, religious, passion-free. Hence misery strikes not him alone: In bitterest grief the people moan, Like creatures of the stream, when dry In the great heat the channels lie. The world is mournful with the grief That falls on its beloved chief, As, when the root is hewn away, Tree, fruit, and flower, and bud decay, The soul of duty, bright to see, He is the root of you and me; And all of us, who share his grief, His branches, blossom, fruit, and leaf. Now like the faithful Lakshman, we Will follow and be true as he; Our wives and kinsmen call with speed, And hasten where our lord shall lead. Yes, we will leave each well-loved spot, The field, the garden, and the cot, And. sharers of his weal and woe, Behind the pious Rama go. Our houses, empty of their stores, Writh ruined courts and broken doors, With all their treasures' borne away. And gear that made them bright and gay: O'errun by rats, with dust o'erspread, Shrines, whence the deities have fled, Where not a hand the water pours, Or sweeps the long-neglected floors, No incense loads the evening air. No Brahmans chant the text and prayer, No tire of sacrifice is bright, No gift is known, no sacred rite; With floors which broken vessels strew, As if our woes had crushed them too — Of these be stern Kaikeyi queen. And rule o'er homes where we have been. The wood where Kama's feet may roam Shall be our city arid our home, And this fair city we forsake, Our flight a wilderness shall make.
Each serpent from his hole shall hie, The birds and beasts from mountain fly, Lions and elephants in fear Shall quit the woods when we come near, Yield tiie broad wilds for us to range, And take our city in exchange. With Kama will we hence, content If, where he is, our days be spent.'
Such were the varied words the crowd Of all conditions spoke aloud. And Kama heard their speeches, yet Changed not his purpose firmly set. His father's palace soon he neared, That like Kaiiasa's hill appeared. Like a wild elephant he strode Right onward to the bright abode. Within the palace court he stepped, Where ordered bands their station kept, And saw Sumaiitra standing near With down-cast eye and gloomy cheer.
CANTO XXXIV.
RAMA IN THE PALACE.
The dark incomparable chief Whose eye was like a lotus leaf, Cried to the mournful charioteer, 4 Go tell my sire that I am here;' Sumantra, sad and all dismayed, The chieftain's order swift obeyed. Within the palace doors he hied And saw the king, who wept and sighed. Like the great sun when wrapped in shade, Like fire by ashes overlaid, Or like a pool with waters dried, So lay the world's great lord and pride. Awhile the wise Sumantra gazed. On him whose senses woe has dazed, Grieving for Kama. Near he drew With hands upraised in reverence due. With blessing first his king he hailed; Then with a voice that well-nigh failed, In trembling accents soft and low Addressed the monarch in his woe: * The prince of men, thy Kama, waits To see thee at the palace gates. His wealth to Brahmans he has dealt, And all who in his home have dwelt. Admit thy son. His friends have heard His kind farewell and parting word. He longs to see thee first, and then Will seek the wilds, O King of men. He, with each princely virtue's blaze, Shines as the sun engirt by rays.'
The truthful king who loved to keep The law. profound as Ocean's deep, And stainless as the dark blue.sky, Thus to Sumaiitra made reply: Canto XXX I V.
THE RAM AY AN.
Go then, Sumantra, go and call My wives and ladies one and all, 3rawn round me shall they fill the place When 1 behold my Kama's face.'
Quick to the inner rooms he sped, Lnd thus to all the women said, Come, at the summons of the king: Dome all. and make no tarrying.'
Their husband's word, by him conveyed, 3oon as they heard, the dames obeyed, knd following his guidance all Jame thronging to the regal hall, [n number half seven hundred, they, &11 lovely dames, in long array, With their bright eyes for weeping red, l"o stand round Queen Kau.salya, sped. 1'hey gathered, and the monarch viewed One moment all the multitude, fhen to Sumantra spoke and said: 'Now let my son be hither led.'
Sumantra went. Then Rama came, And Lakshman, and the Maithil daine, And, as he led 'them on, their guide Straight to the monarch's presence hied. When yet far off the father saw Bis son with raised palms toward him draw, Grirt by his ladies, sick with woes, Swift from his royal seat he rose. With all his strength the aged man To meet his darling Rama ran, But trembling, wild with dark despair, Fell on the ground and fainted there. And Lakshman, wont in cars to ride, And Rama, threw them by the side Of the poor miserable king, Half lifeless with his sorrow's sting. Throughout the spacious hall up went A thousand women's wild lament: 'Ah Rama!' thus they wailed and wept, And anklets tinkled as they stepped. Around his body, weeping, threw Their loving arms the brothers two, And then, with Sita's gentle aid, The king upon a couch was laid. At length to earth's imperial lord, When life and knowledge were restored, Though seas of woe went o'er his head, With suppliant hands thus Rama said: 1 Lord of us all, great King, thou art: Bid me farewell before we part. To Dandak wood this day 1 go: One blessing and one look bestow. Let Lakshman my companion be, And Sita also follow me. With truthful pleas I sought to bend Their purpose; but no ear they lend.
Now cast this sorrow from thy heart, And let us all, great King, depart, As Brahma sends his children, so ILet Lakshman, me, and Sita go.'