Valmiki Ramayana 2.91.9: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 91, Shloka 9
भरद्वाजाश्रमे भरतसैन्यस्य दिव्यात्मिथ्यम् / Divine Hospitality to Bharata’s Army at Bharadvaja’s Hermitage
Spoken by Bharata to BharadvajaSetting: Approach to Bharadvāja-āśrama / hermitage zonePlaces named: āśrama, uṭaja (hermit huts)Advance movement to prevent disturbance before main body arrives
ते वृक्षानुदकं भूमिमाश्रमेषूटजां स्तथा ।
न हिंस्युरिति तेनाऽहमेक एव समागतः ॥९॥
te vṛkṣān udakaṃ bhūmim āśrameṣv uṭajāṃs tathā |
na hiṃsyur iti tenāham eka eva samāgataḥ ||9||
वृक्षान् उदकं भूमिं आश्रमेषु कुटजान् च ते न हिंस्युः—इति मनसि कृत्वा, तेनाहम् एक एव अत्र समागतः॥
Sandhi Notes
- वृक्षानुदकं → vṛkṣān + udakam
- भूमिमाश्रमेषु → bhūmim + āśrameṣu
- आश्रमेषूटजां → āśrameṣu + uṭajān
- तेनाऽहम् → tena + aham
- एक एव → ekaḥ + eva
Lest the army should damage the huts, trees, land, and defile the water in the ashram, I came here alone.
The teaching
Power must first learn restraint; the righteous protect even trees, water, and humble huts.
Duties in tension
- Military movement/logistics
- Ahiṃsā and protection of āśrama property and ecology
- Ethical theme
- Rājadharma / environmental-ethical restraint
- How it resolves
- Prioritizing āśrama-maryādā through proactive restraint (going alone)
For your practice
Cultivates ahiṃsā and mindfulness in action (karma-yoga attitude) even amid large undertakings.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace), with Karuna (compassion)
- Mood
- Protective, conscientious, restrained
Themes
- Dharma
- Ahimsa
- Maryada
- Ethics
Seeing ‘land, water, trees’ as worthy of protection reflects a sattvic vision where the world is not mere resource but a field of dharma.
Īśā Upaniṣad’s spirit of non-grasping (mā gṛdhaḥ): do not appropriate or damage what is not yours; live with restraint.
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.91 (discipline around Bharadvāja’s āśrama)
Manusmṛti: protection of āśramas and non-injury to living beings (general); Mahābhārata: rājadharma as ‘rakṣaṇa’ (general)
Araṇyakāṇḍa: repeated emphasis on not disturbing ascetics and forest order (thematic parallel)
Anuṣṭup (śloka)
Solemn
Mandra (low register)
FAQs
Ahimsa and environmental reverence within dharma: sacred spaces (āśramas) and their natural resources should not be harmed, even unintentionally by a large force.
Bharata explains why he personally approached the sage instead of bringing the entire army into the hermitage area.
Bharata’s conscientious restraint and respect for ascetic life—protecting the hermitage and its ecology.
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