The King Hears His Own Death Speaking through Kaikeyi
Ayodhya Kanda, Doha 35
Doha 35 · Movement 2 of 2
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Kaikeyi's words pierce Dasharatha to the core. Looking upon the queen he has loved, he can no longer recognize the source of the voice before him.
Some fault must lie beyond her alone, he says. A destructive power has seized her, and his own death now speaks through her mouth.
The insight does not excuse choice, but it perceives possession by a momentum larger than ordinary anger. Manthara, divine purpose, fate, fear, oath, and Kaikeyi's hardened will have converged. Dasharatha hears the sentence of his life pronounced in the familiar voice of his beloved.
From Kaikeyi's mouth, Dasharatha hears not the wife he knew but the voice of his approaching death.
Read the passage from the Manas
मरम बचन सुनि राउ कह कहु कछु दोषु न तोर। लागेउ तोहि पिसाच जिमि कालु कहावत मोर।।35।।
Hearing these words that pierced to the core, the king said: 'Some fault is not yours alone. A demon has seized hold of you, and it is my own death that speaks through your mouth.'