Śṛṅgaverapura was the capital of the Nishāda kingdom, ruled by King Guha. It stood on the banks of the great Gaṅgā. It was the first major halt in Rāma’s journey into exile. Rāma, Sītā and Lakshmaṇa came here after travelling south through Kosala and crossing the Gomatī and Sāṇḍikā rivers. From its shore Rāma crossed the Gaṅgā into the Vatsa country, said farewell to Sumantra and left the kingdom of Ayodhyā. After this crossing Rāma was truly in the forest.

Arrival of Rāma

Rāma, Sītā and Lakshmaṇa left Ayodhyā in the chariot driven by Sumantra. They went south through the lands of Kosala. They crossed the Gomatī river and then the Sāṇḍikā river. The village people on the way spoke harshly of Kaikeyī and Daśaratha and mourned Rāma’s exile. After some days they reached Śṛṅgaverapura, a beautiful town on the bank of the Gaṅgā and the seat of the Nishāda king Guha. The Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa tells this in the Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 49–50.

The Gaṅgā at Śṛṅgaverapura is broad and strong, the holy river flowing in her beauty. The town and the land around it are part of the old forest territory of the Nishādas. Their king was an old friend of Rāma.

Guha’s welcome

Guha heard that Rāma had come. He went to receive the exiles and brought the best fruits, foods and gifts his kingdom could give. He offered all his hospitality and the riches of the Nishāda kingdom for Rāma’s comfort. He asked Rāma to stay and be treated as a king. His army, his lands and his power were all at Rāma’s service.

Rāma accepted Guha’s love with warmth and thanks, but he refused every comfort. He had vowed to live as a forest ascetic, and he would take nothing beyond what that life allows. He accepted only fodder for the horses that had carried them. He, Sītā and Lakshmaṇa ate only forest food, fruits and roots. This deeply moved Guha. The Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 50–51, tells this.

The sleepless night

The three exiles slept that night under a great ingudi tree on the bank of the river. Guha, Lakshmaṇa and Sumantra stayed awake and kept watch all night. Lakshmaṇa poured out his grief to Guha in a long lament. He spoke of his pain at what had been done to Rāma, of his fear for Kauśalyā, and of his belief that Daśaratha would not live through the separation. Guha listened and shared the sorrow. It hurt Guha and Lakshmaṇa most to see Sītā sleeping on the bare ground, when she was used to the finest beds of Ayodhyā. This is in the Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapter 51.

The crossing of the Gaṅgā

At dawn Rāma said farewell to Sumantra and sent him back to Ayodhyā with loving messages for Daśaratha and Kauśalyā. Before they went on the boat, Rāma and Lakshmaṇa twisted their hair with the milky sap of the banyan tree and matted it into jaṭā. In this way they took on fully the marks of a forest ascetic. Guha arranged the boat, and they crossed the great Gaṅgā.

In the middle of the river Sītā prayed to the Gaṅgā with folded hands. She vowed to give ten thousand cows and food to brāhmaṇas, and to offer joyful pūjā at the tīrthas of the holy river, when she came back to Ayodhyā with Rāma after fourteen years of exile. Rāma and Lakshmaṇa also bowed to the holy river. They landed on the southern bank in the Vatsa country. Sumantra watched from the northern bank until the boat could no longer be seen. Then he turned back toward Ayodhyā, carrying the sorrow of that hour with him. The Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 52–53, tells this.

Bharata’s visit

Later in the Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, after the death of Daśaratha, Bharata came looking for Rāma. Śṛṅgaverapura was his first stop. Guha received Bharata and told him all that had happened. He told how the exiles had come, how Rāma had refused the hospitality, how they had spent the night, and how at dawn Rāma and Lakshmaṇa had made their jaṭā and crossed the Gaṅgā. Guha showed Bharata the place where Rāma had slept, which still showed the mark of his body on the ground. Bharata wept bitterly. Guha’s account told Bharata which way his brother had gone and in what spirit Rāma had taken the exile. This is in the chapters of the Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa about Bharata’s journey.

Sources

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 49–53
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, the chapters about Bharata’s journey