Full · 7 min aloud
By the time reached the , he had crossed the country of Kosala.
But he had not come alone on foot.
and were with him, and so was , the charioteer who had brought them away from Ayodhyā. The horses of King Daśaratha still stood harnessed to the chariot.
Near Śṛṅgaverapura, Rāma saw the Gaṅgā — sacred, swift, full of waves and whirlpools. Not far from the river stood a great iṅgudī tree, covered in new shoots and flowers.
We will stay here tonight, Rāma told Sumantra.
This was the country of , king of the Niṣādas.
And Guha was not a stranger.
Vālmīki calls him Rāma's friend already — a friend dear to him as his own life.
When word reached Guha that Rāma had entered his land, he came with his elders, ministers and relatives.
Rāma saw him coming and went forward with Lakṣmaṇa to meet him.
Guha embraced Rāma.
Think of this place as you would Ayodhyā, he said. What can I do for you?
Then Guha began to offer things.
Food had been prepared. Drinks. Beds. Fodder for the royal horses.
And more than that.
All this land is yours, Guha told him. We are at your service. Rule this kingdom.
Rāma answered him with affection.
Guha had come himself, on foot, to welcome him. That alone, Rāma said, had honoured them.
He embraced Guha and asked after his kingdom, his friends and his treasury.
But then he looked at everything Guha had prepared.
I cannot accept these things.
Rāma was beginning his life in the forest. He had taken a vow to live as an ascetic, wearing bark and deerskin and living on roots and fruits.
There was only one thing he asked Guha to provide.
Food for the horses.
These horses belong to my father, Rāma said.
So Guha had them fed.
That evening Rāma performed his prayers at sunset.
And instead of the meal Guha had prepared, he drank only water brought to him by Lakṣmaṇa.
Then Rāma and Sītā lay down on the ground.
Lakṣmaṇa did not sleep.
Guha saw him standing awake and offered him a comfortable bed.
You are used to comfort, Guha told him. My people and I are used to hardship. We will guard Rāma tonight.
Then Guha said something that explained why he had come running to the riverbank with so much to give.
No one in this world is dearer to me than Rāma.
He knew this forest. He had men with him. He said that even a great army could not surprise them there.
Lakṣmaṇa answered that with Guha guarding them, they had nothing to fear.
But he still would not lie down.
How can I sleep while Rāma and Sītā are lying on the earth?
So Lakṣmaṇa remained awake.
Guha remained awake too.
Through the night the two men talked while Rāma and Sītā slept on the ground.
Lakṣmaṇa spoke of Ayodhyā. Of his father. Of the mothers they had left behind. He wondered whether Daśaratha would survive the grief of Rāma's exile.
Guha listened.
And as Lakṣmaṇa spoke, Guha wept.
At dawn Rāma heard the birds of the forest.
It is morning, he said. Let us cross the Gaṅgā.
Guha immediately gave the order.
A strong boat was brought to the landing place, with a helmsman ready.
But before Rāma left, there was something else to do.
He had decided that from here he would live fully in the manner of an ascetic. He asked Guha to bring him the milky sap of a banyan tree.
Guha brought it at once.
With it, Rāma bound his hair into matted locks, and did the same for Lakṣmaṇa.
The two brothers, already dressed in bark, now looked like forest ascetics.
Only then did Rāma say goodbye to his friend.
He even left Guha with advice: watch your army, your treasury, your fortifications and your people carefully. A kingdom, he said, is difficult to protect.
Sītā entered the boat first.
Lakṣmaṇa followed her.
Then Rāma climbed in.
Guha did not climb in after them. He ordered his own kinsmen to take the oars.
Rāma said farewell to Guha and to Sumantra, who would carry messages back toward Ayodhyā.
The boat pushed away.
In the middle of the Gaṅgā, Sītā joined her hands and prayed to the river.
Let Rāma fulfil his father's command, she prayed. Let the fourteen years pass safely. And let all three of them return to this river again.
Then the boat carried them to the other bank.
Guha had offered his friend food, beds, men and even a kingdom.
Rāma had accepted almost none of them.
slow down hereBut when there was a night to keep watch and a river that had to be crossed, Guha was there.
Short · 3 min aloud
When reached the , , and the charioteer were still with him.
They stopped beneath a great iṅgudī tree near the river.
This was the land of , king of the Niṣādas — and already one of Rāma's closest friends.
When Guha heard that Rāma had arrived, he came with his ministers and relatives.
He embraced Rāma.
This place is as much yours as Ayodhyā, he told him.
Then Guha offered everything he could.
Food. Drinks. Beds.
Even his kingdom.
Rāma thanked his friend but refused.
He had taken the discipline of forest life. He would not live like a prince here.
There was only one thing he asked Guha for: Feed my father's horses.
So Guha did.
That evening Rāma drank only water and lay down on the ground beside Sītā.
Lakṣmaṇa stayed awake.
Guha offered him a bed.
No one is dearer to me than Rāma, Guha said. My people and I will guard him.
Lakṣmaṇa answered, How can I sleep while Rāma and Sītā sleep on the earth?
So neither man slept.
They kept watch together.
At dawn Rāma said it was time to cross the Gaṅgā.
Guha had a strong boat brought.
Rāma also asked him for the sap of a banyan tree. Guha fetched it, and Rāma used it to bind his own hair and Lakṣmaṇa's into the matted locks of forest ascetics.
Then it was time to leave.
Sītā entered the boat first, then Lakṣmaṇa, then Rāma.
Guha ordered his kinsmen to row them across.
In the middle of the river, Sītā folded her hands and prayed that after fourteen years they would all return safely.
slow down hereGuha could not stop his friend's exile. He could make sure his friend did not face that night, or that river, alone.