extraction.ramayana.sandals_regency_bharata
---
record_id: extraction.ramayana.sandals_regency_bharata
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
passage_locator:
label: 'Book II, Cantos CXII-CXIV: The Sandals; Bharat''s Return; Bharat''s Departure'
start: 25311
end: 25611
translation: Ralph T. H. Griffith, Project Gutenberg eBook of the Ramayana of Valmiki
notes: Line numbers refer to the repository markdown source for Bharat's final plea
to Ráma, the transfer of the sandals, and Bharat's return to a grieving Ayodhyá.
canonical_text:
summary: After sages affirm Ráma's righteousness, Bharat begs him to return and
rule, but Ráma refuses to violate their father's word. Bharat asks instead for
Ráma's sandals, treats them as the delegated seat of rule, vows to live austerely
outside the realm until the exile ends, and returns with them to Ayodhyá, which
appears dark and joyless in Ráma's absence.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The sages praise the brothers and counsel Bharat to accept Ráma's righteous
position.
category: counsel
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Bharat asks Ráma to take up kingship because he does not believe he can protect
or hold the realm as Ráma can.
category: petition
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Ráma embraces Bharat but insists that he will keep his father's word even
if cosmic order changes.
category: vow_speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: Bharat asks Ráma to place his feet in a gold-decked pair of sandals so that
the realm may be protected by them.
category: ritual_request
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: Bharat vows to wear hermit's dress, live on roots and fruit outside the kingdom,
delegate rule to the sandals, and die in fire if Ráma does not return at the end
of fourteen years.
category: self_binding_oath
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:6
text: Bharat carries the sandals on his head, receives Bharadvája's approval, and
bears them toward Ayodhyá as guardians of the land.
category: return
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: obs:7
text: When Bharat reaches Ayodhyá he laments that the city is mute, dark, and stripped
of festivity because all grieve for banished Ráma.
category: city_lament
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Ráma
description: Exiled rightful ruler who refuses kingship during the exile and authorizes
Bharat to carry his sandals instead.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Bharat
description: Devoted younger brother who refuses to usurp Ráma, requests the sandals,
and returns as a self-abnegating caretaker.
role_refs:
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Ráma's sandals
description: Gold-decked sandals that Bharat treats as the delegated protectors
of the realm.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Sages and royal priests
description: Ascetics and counselors, including Vaśishṭha and Bharadvája, who affirm
the arrangement and frame it as righteous.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:7
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Ayodhyá
description: The royal city personified through Bharat's lament as joyless and diminished
in Ráma's absence.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
roles:
- id: role:1
label: absent rightful king
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Ráma is acknowledged as the proper ruler, yet he refuses to return before
the exile is complete because of filial duty.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: role:2
label: loyal petitioner
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Bharat pleads repeatedly for Ráma to rule and frames himself as unequal to
the task.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: role:3
label: self-denying regent
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Bharat vows ascetic living outside the kingdom and says he will delegate
rule to the sandals until Ráma returns.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: role:4
label: surrogate emblem of sovereignty
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The sandals are placed on Ráma's feet, then carried above Bharat's head and
said to protect the people and guard the land.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: role:5
label: ritual-political validators
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The sages praise the brothers, advise Bharat, and later affirm that the sandals
will ensure Ayodhyá's welfare.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:7
- id: role:6
label: grieving kingdom
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Ayodhyá is described as muted, dark, and emptied of festivity because of
Ráma's absence.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: gold-decked sandals
literal_form: these sandals on thy blessed feet; with gold bedecked
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs:
- royal_legitimacy
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: sym:2
label: hermit's dress and matted hair
literal_form: the hermit's dress and matted hair
associated_figures:
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:3
label: sandals borne on the head
literal_form: bearing the sandals on his head
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:4
label: darkened city
literal_form: Ayodhyá dark and sad
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Bharat's failed plea
summary: Sages commend the brothers, Bharat pleads for Ráma to return and rule,
and Ráma refuses because he will not break his father's word.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:2
label: Investiture of the sandals
summary: Bharat asks for the gold-decked sandals, Ráma places them beneath his feet
and gives them over, and Bharat vows an austere guardianship until the exile ends.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: scene:3
label: Return under priestly approval
summary: Bharat bears the sandals on his head, travels home with the counselors,
and tells Bharadvája that the sandals will guard Ayodhyá in Ráma's stead.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: scene:4
label: Lament over the emptied capital
summary: Reentering Ayodhyá, Bharat describes a city bereft of music, fragrance,
festivity, and joy because all mourn for Ráma.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: surrogate kingship through royal object
taxonomy_refs:
- royal_legitimacy
basis: The sandals, once placed beneath Ráma's feet, are treated as the delegated
protectors of realm and people during his absence.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The passage clearly gives the sandals a regnal function, but it does not
articulate a formal coronation rite here.
- id: motif:2
label: regency by self-abnegation
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: Bharat refuses ordinary royal enjoyment, adopts hermit signs, and binds his
own life to Ráma's timely return.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The sacrifice is ethical and ascetic; the scene does not depict an offering
ritual.
- id: motif:3
label: city mourns absent ruler
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Ayodhyá is described as dark, silent, and stripped of festival life while
Ráma remains away.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
confidence: medium
cautions: The city is personified through simile and lament; this should not be
read as an independent acting figure beyond poetic description.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: This passage is a strong atlas candidate for narratives in which a ruler's
authority is represented and preserved through a personal object while a loyal
subordinate governs provisionally.
claim_level: same_function
target: delegated-rule and absent-sovereign comparison records
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The claim concerns narrative function only and does not assert direct
relation to other regency traditions.
- id: claim:2
claim: Bharat's vow and the city's grief also make this a cautious comparison point
for scenes where collective well-being is suspended until the rightful ruler returns.
claim_level: same_motif
target: exile-return and grieving-capital comparison records
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:8
- ev:9
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: low
limitations: This remains a broad motif comparison; the present passage does not
include the final restoration itself.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 25314-25347
quote_or_summary: Sages praise the brothers and advise Bharat to accept Ráma's righteous
counsel and free him from further filial obligation.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public-domain Project Gutenberg source text.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 25349-25370
quote_or_summary: Bharat begs Ráma to respect royal duty, return to rule, and secure
the realm because Bharat believes he lacks the power and love needed for kingship.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public-domain Project Gutenberg source text.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 25372-25389
quote_or_summary: Ráma lifts Bharat up affectionately but says even if moon, snow,
and ocean changed, he would still keep his father's word.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public-domain Project Gutenberg source text.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 25391-25403
quote_or_summary: Bharat asks Ráma to place his feet upon the gold-decked sandals
so that they may protect realm and people, and Ráma gives them to him.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public-domain Project Gutenberg source text.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 25404-25425
quote_or_summary: Bharat vows to live in hermit's dress outside the kingdom, delegate
rule to the sandals, and enter fire if Ráma does not return at the close of fourteen
years.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public-domain Project Gutenberg source text.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 25426-25455
quote_or_summary: Bharat reverently circles Ráma, places the bright sandals above
his brows, and has them bound upon the royal elephant before departing.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public-domain Project Gutenberg source text.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 25476-25517
quote_or_summary: Bharat tells Bharadvája that Vaśishṭha instructed him to hold
the sandals because they would secure Ayodhyá's welfare, and the hermit praises
Bharat's just mind.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public-domain Project Gutenberg source text.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 25531-25538
quote_or_summary: On seeing Ayodhyá again Bharat says the city is dark, sad, and
shorn of its former brightness.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public-domain Project Gutenberg source text.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 25543-25609
quote_or_summary: Bharat enters the city and laments its silence, lost music, absent
festivity, and universal grief for banished Ráma before weeping in the inner apartments.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public-domain Project Gutenberg source text.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: low
notes: The regency-by-sandals structure is explicit; broader comparative framing
remains intentionally narrow.
reviewer_status:
status: draft
notes: Draft extraction; review should confirm the chosen royal_legitimacy and sacrifice
mappings.
extracted_by: Codex
extracted_at: '2026-04-27'
notes: Ramayana extraction focused on Bharat's petition, the sandals as delegated
regnal authority, ascetic regency, and Ayodhyá's grief in Ráma's absence.