Kaikeyi’s Demands – The Two Boons (Ramayana Series 20)

While King Dasharatha was gently consoling his beloved queen, Kaikeyi—her mind still restless—slowly regained composure. Yet within her heart, a storm brewed. Wanting to speak words that would pierce her husband’s soul, she softly said,

“My Lord, none have insulted me, nor has anyone wronged me.

But I have a wish, a deep desire within my heart.

Promise me, on your truth and honor, that you will fulfill it—

and only then shall I reveal it to you.”

Blinded by love, the passionate Dasharatha smiled tenderly. He lifted Kaikeyi’s head with both hands and placed it upon his lap, caressing her face with affection, and said with a gentle laugh,

“O beautiful one, proud of your charm and grace!

Know this—there is none dearer to me than you.

I swear upon the life of my beloved Rama,

and upon the merit of my good deeds,

that I shall fulfill whatever you ask of me.”

Hearing this solemn oath, Kaikeyi’s eyes glimmered with cunning. She spoke firmly, making the heavens her witness:

“O King! You have sworn by Rama and by your virtue.

Let all thirty-three crore gods hear this!

Let the Sun and the Moon bear witness,

and let the very Earth and sky stand as proof—

that the righteous Dasharatha has promised me my boon!”

Having bound her husband in the sacred thread of his own word, Kaikeyi then reminded him of an old story—

“O King, do you recall the battle at Vaijayanta,

where gods and demons fought fiercely?

You went to aid Indra and fought against Shambara,

who struck you down with his sharp arrows.

You fell unconscious, your body wounded from head to toe.

I, who guarded you with sleepless eyes, saved your life that day.

In gratitude, you granted me two boons.

I did not claim them then,

but now, my lord, the time has come.”

Kaikeyi’s voice hardened with resolve:

“O noble King, you have sworn to me in truth.

It is now your duty, by Dharma, to grant me those two boons.

If you deny me,

I shall lay down my life before your eyes!”

Dasharatha, bound by his own word and love, could only nod in silence. And then, with the tone of one revealing fate itself, Kaikeyi declared:

“The first boon, O King—

Let Bharata be crowned in place of Rama!

The very preparations made for Rama’s coronation—

the rituals, the ornaments, the sacred waters—

let them all be used for Bharata’s anointing!”

“And the second boon—

Let Rama, the noble one, dwell in the forests of Dandakaranya

for fourteen years,

wearing bark garments and matted hair,

living as an ascetic!”

Kaikeyi concluded with cold determination:

“Let Bharata rule the kingdom, free from obstacles.

This is my heart’s greatest desire.

O King of Kings, uphold the truth of your lineage!

Protect your honor, your promise, and your virtue!”

And thus, by her own cunning, Kaikeyi bound the righteous Dasharatha in the unbreakable chains of his own word, and destiny began to unfold the sorrow of Ayodhya.