Bharata-Kūpa is a sacred kūpa (well) in the region of the Citrakūṭa mountain, at a spot shown by the great ṛshi Atri Maharshi. It is named after Bharata, the son of Daśaratha. At the great meeting at Citrakūṭa, Bharata poured into this well the sacred waters (tīrtha-jala) from all the holy places of the land, which he had brought with him. Atri Maharshi then declared that from that day the well would carry Bharata’s name for ever.

The occasion

Bharata came to Citrakūṭa to meet Rāma and to beg him to return to Ayodhyā. He had brought with him the materials made ready for Rāma’s coronation (paṭṭābhisheka), which never took place. These included consecrated waters gathered from all the great tīrthas of Bhāratavarsha, the pañcatīrtha-jala and the sarvapuṇyatīrtha-jala. They had been collected and blessed for the solemn coronation of a king.

The great meeting at Citrakūṭa ended with Rāma’s firm refusal to return to Ayodhyā, and Bharata accepted this. Rāma then told Bharata to go through the mountain and see its sacred spots with Atri Maharshi as his guide. Rāma suggested that the tīrtha-jala be consecrated and kept in a fitting place chosen by the ṛshi. (Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa, Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa)

The naming

Atri Maharshi led Bharata to an ancient kūpa. With respect, Bharata poured into this well all the tīrtha-jala he had gathered from the holy places, and so filled it with the waters of the holiest rivers and tīrthas of the land.

After this, Atri told Bharata and his companions the ancient history of the kūpa. Then he declared:

From this day forward, this kūpa shall be known as Bharata-Kūpa.

The name honours the act of consecration and also Bharata himself. He was a prince who had brought the tīrtha-jala for his elder brother’s coronation. When that coronation could not take place, he gave the waters to the sacred land of Rāma’s own forest home. (Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa, Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa)

The well today

The waters that Bharata had gathered for a joyful ceremony became, in the course of dharma, the means of making a holy place in the forest where Rāma lived. The well holds the blessings of all the tīrthas of Bhāratavarsha, poured into it by Rāma’s dearest brother as an act of devotion. Bharata-Kūpa is counted among the sacred places of the Citrakūṭa region.

Sources

Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa, Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa