A Comprehensive Collection - Swami Vivekananda

"496 THE RAMAYANA.hand of Sita, but Sita selected Rama, the son, of KingDasaratha. And they were married. Rama came home,and his old father thought that the time had #ome for himto appoint Rama as the Young-king, and himself retire.And everything was ready ;the whole country began feasting and jubilating over the affair when the youngest ^ueen,Kaikeyi, was reminded by one of her servants pf two promises which the king had made to her. Sometime previousto that she had pleased the king ve"rymuch andthe king granted her two boons "Ask : any two things inmy power, and I will grant you and she did notthat,"ask.So when the time had come she had forgotten all aboutthat ;but there was a servant in her employ who began towork upon her jealousy, till she was almost mad with jf^alousy,asi? then the servant told her to ask from the kingthe two boons ;one would be that her own son, Bharatashould be on the throne ;and next, that Rama shouldgo to the forest,be exiled. Rama was the soul of theold king ; but he was a King, and he could not go backon his word. He did not know what to do, and Ramacame to the rescue, and he willingly offered to go into exileand give up the throne, so that his father might not be aliar ;and for fourteen yeart he went into exile. And theAryans did not know who inhabited these places. Allthe forest tribes of that day, they called monkeys and soon, if very ugly. And some that were called monkeys,if strong and powerful were called demons.So, into this forest, inhabited by demons and monkeys, Rama must go. And Sita, she offered to accompanyRama. How, you, a princess accompany me and bearfull of unknownthese hardships ; going into the forest,dangers!""Wherever Rama goes, there go I.What, doyou talk of c princess and royal birth ? I go before