Sumantra

Sumantra was the trusted chief minister and charioteer of King Daśaratha of Ayodhyā. He was one of the eight chief ministers (mantris) of the court of Ayodhyā, and the one who stands closest to the personal story of Daśaratha’s life. He was there at its turning points. He recalled the old words about Ṛśyaśṛṅga that pointed the way to the Putrakāmeshṭi yajña (the fire ritual for gaining sons). He was also the charioteer who drove Rāma, Sītā and Lakshmaṇa out of Ayodhyā when the exile began.

Among the eight ministers

Sumantra is named among the eight chief ministers of Daśaratha’s court. They are Dhṛshṭi, Jayanta, Vijaya, Siddhārtha, Arthasādhaka, Aśoka, Mantrapāla and Sumantra. He was a senior statesman and also Daśaratha’s personal sārathi (charioteer). This kept him closer to the king than a minister of administration alone. The Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa says this in Bāla Kāṇḍa, Chapter 7.

The prophecy and Ṛśyaśṛṅga

Daśaratha wished for sons and called together his ministers and purohitas (household priests). Sumantra then recalled an old prophecy. Ṛśyaśṛṅga, the son of Vibhāṇḍaka, was the ṛshi who must perform the yajña that would give Daśaratha sons. Sumantra told the story of Ṛśyaśṛṅga’s birth and his life in the forest. He told of his power to end droughts and bring back order. This account turned the whole effort toward the Putrakāmeshṭi. The Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa tells this in Bāla Kāṇḍa, Chapter 9.

The charioteer of the exile

In the Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Sumantra’s part is at its most moving. He drove the chariot that carried Rāma, Sītā and Lakshmaṇa out of Ayodhyā on the first day of the exile, through the weeping crowds and the silent streets. He then drove south through Kosala and crossed the rivers Gomatī and Sāṇḍikā. He reached the bank of the Gaṅgā at Śṛṅgaverapura. There Guha, the king of the Nishādas, received Rāma. The Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa tells this in Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 40–51.

Farewell at Śṛṅgaverapura

At Śṛṅgaverapura Rāma got ready to cross the Gaṅgā and sent Sumantra back to Ayodhyā. Sumantra begged to go on into the forest, for he could not bear to part. Rāma refused, because the people of Ayodhyā needed him. Rāma gave Sumantra full messages and loving words for each person in the royal household. There were messages for Daśaratha, for Kauśalyā and for each of the queens.

Sumantra watched from the northern bank as Guha’s boat carried Rāma, Sītā and Lakshmaṇa across the Gaṅgā. He stood watching until they vanished among the trees. Only then did he turn back toward Ayodhyā. The Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa tells this in Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 52–53.

Return to Ayodhyā

Sumantra’s journey back to Ayodhyā took three days and was full of grief. He drove through Kosala alone, with a chariot empty of those who had filled it. The villages seemed changed, and the joy had gone from the land he knew. When he came near the city, Ayodhyā was changed utterly. It was silent. The decorations were gone or sad to see. The streets were empty of their usual life, like a woman who has lost her husband.

He drove through the seven kakshyās (entrance halls) of the palace to the chambers of Daśaratha. Daśaratha heard the chariot wheels from far off and, in desperate hope, thought Rāma might be returning. When he saw Sumantra alone, he fell back into grief. The Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa tells this in Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 57–58.

Daśaratha’s questions

Daśaratha asked Sumantra about every detail of the journey. What had Rāma said? Where had they slept? What had Sītā eaten? Had Rāma looked back toward Ayodhyā? Sumantra answered every question with complete honesty. He also described the bleak state of the world around Rāma’s path, as if nature itself were mourning. Daśaratha’s grief grew deeper still. The Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa tells this in Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 58–60.

Consoling Kauśalyā

Sumantra also spoke to Kauśalyā, who questioned him anxiously about Rāma and Sītā. He gave her true comfort. Sītā walked through the forest with a radiant face and a joyful, fearless step. She was at peace in Rāma’s company, as if the forest were her own home. Rāma walked the forest paths with the same calm and certainty as in the palace corridors. Kauśalyā also asked Sumantra to take her to Rāma in Daṇḍaka. Sumantra gently handled this request, which could not be met, and offered her all the comfort he could. The Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa tells this in Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 59–60.

In Rāma’s sabhā

The Rājya Khaṇḍa of the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa describes the sabhā (court) of Bhagavān Rāma. In it Sumantra is the only member of Rāma’s whole court who was allowed to sit in Rāma’s presence. All the other servants and ministers stood. The Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa tells this in Rājya Khaṇḍa, Chapter 19.

Death and Vaikuṇṭha

Sumantra lived to a very great age, 9,999 years, 11 months and 21 days, as worked out from his birth chart. Yama’s dūtas (messengers) came to take him. Rāma met them on the road and examined his birth chart. He found that they had come nine days too early, because they had counted from the day his body first began to appear at birth, not from the day it had come out completely. Rāma sent Sumantra back to his home and ruled that nine days were still left. This dispute led to Yama’s attack on Ayodhyā, which failed.

In those last nine days Sumantra stayed in Rāma’s presence and spent his time in full devotion, giving dāna (gifts) and doing sacred acts. On the tenth day his full life was truly complete. He bathed with his wives, came before Rāma, offered his last namaskāra (bow) and peacefully gave up his life. At the very moment of death he took a divya-deha (divine body), bright and celestial. His wives also took divine forms. A vimāna (celestial vehicle) came down from the sky. Sumantra, the charioteer who had served the solar dynasty with unconditional devotion through his very long life, rose straight to Vaikuṇṭha, the supreme abode of Bhagavān Vishṇu.

Rāma performed all the proper śrāddha (funeral) rites for Sumantra. He gave Sumantra’s son his father’s post, so that the line of devoted service went on. The Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa tells this in Rājya Khaṇḍa, Chapter 24.

Sources

• Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Bāla Kāṇḍa, Chapters 7–9
• Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 40–51, 52–53, 57–58, 58–60 and 59–60
• Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Rājya Khaṇḍa, Chapters 19 and 24