Shloka 17
अपि क्षेमेणास्मिन्नाश्रमोपवने शष्पाणि चरन्तं देवगुप्तं द्रक्ष्यामि ॥ १७ ॥
api kṣemeṇāsminn āśramopavane śaṣpāṇi carantaṁ deva-guptaṁ drakṣyāmi.
“Alas, shall I see him again, safe within this hermitage-grove—guarded by the Lord, fearless of tigers and other beasts, wandering as he grazes on tender grass?”
Mahārāja Bharata thought that the animal was disappointed in his protection and had left him for the protection of a demigod. Regardless, he ardently desired to see the animal again within his āśrama eating the soft grass and not fearing tigers and other animals. Mahārāja Bharata could think only of the deer and how the animal could be protected from all kinds of inauspicious things. From the materialistic point of view such kind thoughts may be very laudable, but from the spiritual point of view the King was actually falling from his exalted spiritual position and unnecessarily becoming attached to an animal. Thus degrading himself, he would have to accept an animal body.
FAQs
This verse shows Bharata’s intense emotional dependence on the deer—worrying for its safety and longing to see it—illustrating how misplaced attachment can overtake even a serious renunciant.
Having rescued and raised the fawn, Bharata’s affection grew into attachment; when the deer was absent, his mind became absorbed in anxiety and separation, and he spoke as if to himself, yearning to see it safe in the ashram grove.
Care and compassion are good, but keep spiritual priorities steady—serve dependents responsibly without letting anxiety and possessiveness replace remembrance of the Lord.