The Immortal Characters of Ramayan By Raj Shah

Author: Raj Shah

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Dasharatha

King Dasharatha is among the most popular, well-known kings in mythology. He was the ruler of Ayodhya and belonged to the Raghuvansha dynasty. He was strong and powerful and is regarded as the noblest of kings. Unable to have any children with his three wives Kaushalya, Kaikeyi and Sumitra, Dasharatha performed a ritual and thus had four 4 children. His eldest son Rama was set to be named Dasharatha’s successor when his second wife Kaikeyi requested two boons to ask that Rama be exiled. This was a turning point in Dasharatha’s life, but he obliged his wife in order to keep his word. However, he then spent his life pining for his son due to this curse. In his days as king, Dasharatha went hunting and shot an arrow at a deer, but heard a cry. He had mistaken a young boy for a deer. Rushing to him, he realized his mistake, but the boy was dying. He asked Dasharatha to take some water to his blind parents. Dasharatha did as he was told and told the parents how their son died. The parents then cursed Dasharatha saying that he too, like them, would die separated from and pining for his beloved son.