THE PRINCES IN ASHRAM

When the princes reached the age of twelve, King Dasharatha

decided to teach them the art of archery. He himself was an

expert archer

. More precisely, he was able to kill an animal just

on hearing its sound.

Once, on account of this art, the king had killed a young man

named Shravan Kumar unknowingly. However, he appointed a

guru to teach the princes

Under the guidance of the king and the guru the princes became

experts in archery very soon. The king was very happy to see

such a progress.

According to tradition, it was now time to send the princes to

school. So, King Dasharatha decided to send the boys to the

gurukul of Guru Vashishtha for the formal education of the

princes. The princes had to give up royal clothes and wear an

ordinary dress.

It was necessary for the all round development of the princes

that they study with other children. As per rule, all were treated

equally in the gurukul.

THE PRINCES IN ASHRAM

 

After their training in weaponry, the princes went to the ashram

of Guru Vashishtha to learn Vedas and other shastras. But

before the same, a ceremony of wearing the sacred thread

‘yajnopaveet' was performed by the guru. It was known as the

“Yajnopaveet Samskar'.

As per convention, the princes had to wear ordinary clothes like

others. There was no difference among the pupils in the ashram.

The Guru was treated as a god.

The Guru treated all the children as equal despite the difference

in their social status. He used to teach religious books, Vedas,

social manners and ethical values to the children.

All the princes learnt their lessons well along with the other

children from different families.

THE PRINCES TAKE BIRTH

THE PRINCES TAKE BIRTH

 

ver since the queens became pregnant, King Dasharatha took

Great care of them. He appointed a number of attendants and

Servants to look after them. The king, the queens as well as the

People of Ayodhya were waiting for the birth of the princes very

Anxiously. Besides them, the gods, the sages and hermits were

aIso waiting for the birth of Lord Vishnu on the earth. In fact,

everybody was eager to see the incarnation of Lord Vishnu on

The Earth!

the long wait came to an end. Lord Vishnu incarnated as the son of

Kaushalya. As Sumitra took the kheer twice she gave birth to

two princes and Kaikeyee gave birth to one.

"he incarnation of Lord Vishnu on Earth made the gods very

happy. Now the sages and hermits were feeling secure. The

King, queens and the people of Ayodhya, all were very happy.

NAMING CEREMONY OF THE PRINCES

 

King Dasharatha distributed food

grains, clothes, ornaments, etc. to

the people wholeheartedly.

After thirteen days, the naming

ceremony of the princes took place.

Guru Vashishtha named the son of

Kaushalya as Rama, meaning

happiness, peace and prosperity in the world. The son of

Kaikeyee was named Bharata, meaning supporter of the world.

The sons of Sumitra were named Lakshmana and Shatrughna,

meaning the base of the world and the killer of enemies,

respectively.

The palace echoed with the cries of the children. Their activities

were worth praising. They were the source of recreation for all

the people of the palace. This way all the princes passed their

time under the care of their mothers and the king.