Valmiki Ramayana 2.90.23: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 90, Shloka 23
भरद्वाजाश्रमगमनम्
Bharata at Bharadvāja’s Hermitage
Spoken by Bharadvaja to BharataSetting: Bharadvaja-ashrama (Prayaga region, near the confluence)Bharata’s march from Ayodhya toward Rama’s forest abode; pause for night halt
श्वस्तु गन्तासि तं देशं वसाद्य सह मन्त्रिभिः ।
एतन्मे कुरु सुप्राज्ञ कामं कामार्थकोविद ॥२३॥
śvas tu gantāsi taṃ deśaṃ vasa adya saha mantribhiḥ |
etan me kuru suprājña kāmaṃ kāmārthakovida ||23||
Esok tuanku akan berangkat ke negeri itu; hari ini tinggallah di sini bersama para menteri. Wahai yang amat bijaksana, mahir menimbang kehendak dan manfaat—kurniakanlah permohonanku ini.
Sandhi Notes
- śvastu = śvaḥ + tu
- vasādya = vasa + adya
- etanme = etat + me
O supremely sagacious prince gifted with the knowledge of kama (desire) and artha (wealth), tomorrow you go, but to night stay here with your ministers and fulfil my desire.
The teaching
Even urgent political aims should be pursued with restraint and respect for dharma, especially toward sages and hosts.
Duties in tension
- Bharata’s urgency to reach Rama quickly
- Observance of atithi-dharma and deference to a rishi-host
- Prudent statecraft: keeping ministers and army orderly vs haste
- Ethical theme
- Rāja-dharma / atithi-dharma
- How it resolves
- Deference to spiritual authority and propriety (kāla-niyama)
For your practice
Practice of patience, humility, and honoring sacred spaces/teachers before action.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace), with Adbhuta (wonder)
- Mood
- Measured, hospitable, strategic
Themes
- Dharma
- Maryada
- Ethics
- Itihasa
Restraint (dama) and right timing (kāla) as aids to dharma; action guided by viveka rather than impulse.
Ethic of truth and right conduct toward guests and teachers (cf. Taittirīya: atithi-devo-bhava as a later cultural crystallization of the same dharmic current).
- Bharadvaja and Bharata
- Rishi-host requesting compliance from royal guest (warmly directive)
- Bharata and Ministers
- Leader with counsel/retinue (cooperative)
- Bharadvaja and Rama
- Rishi’s affectionate regard for dharmic prince (implied) (reverent affection)
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.91.1 (hospitality sequence continues); Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.90.8-9 (assent and motivation)
Dharmaśāstra atithi-dharma motifs (guest to be honored; host to provide shelter)
Ayodhyākāṇḍa: Bharata’s journey and meeting with Bharadvāja (context block 2.90–2.91)
Anuṣṭup (śloka)
Commanding
Madhyama (middle register)
FAQs
Prudence and orderly action: dharma is not haste; it includes appropriate rest, counsel with ministers, and acting at the right time.
Bharadvāja instructs Bharata to remain for the night and proceed the next day, framing it as a personal request.
Bharata’s self-control and receptivity to wise counsel; Bharadvāja’s practical guidance.
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