Week 4 Storytelling: Manthara's Plot

Manthara was an elderly woman who was loved only by King Dasaratha's youngest consort, Kaikeyi.  She helped Kaikeyi raise Bharata, and looked to him as one of her own children.  She was a malicious woman, and always looked out for the best of her own while disregarding others.  When she heard through the servant grapevine that King Dasaratha was making Rama next to take the throne, she became very disgruntled. She had an infamous dislike for Dasaratha's eldest son, for when he was a young boy he injured her when he shot an arrow into her bum.  

When she first heard the news, many thoughts began to circulate in her mind, "What will happen to me now?  Why does Dasaratha see Rama a better heir than her dear Bharata?  What if the king decides to relocate himself and his wives to the countryside, away from the city?  What would I do in the country?!" 

Manthara decided to come up with a plot in order to make sure none of her previous thoughts would take place. She wanted to see Bharata on the throne before Yama called Death after her, and she knew if she was to come up with a plan she must do so quickly.  Manthara made her way to the royal library, and began to look over documents the royal scribes had written over the King's history.  While reviewing the material she came across a battle that Kaikeyi told her about in the past.  Dasaratha was badly wounded in battle, and was nearly dead when Kaikeyi saved him.  At this time the King was so delighted he asked his young Queen to wish for two things, and he would grant them immediately.  Kaikeyi loved Dasaratha tenderly, and was just happy he survived the battle.  She instructed that he save the wishes for a time in the future, for she could think of nothing but his well being at this time.  After reading about this event, Manthara grinned to herself for she now had the key ingredient to her poisonous plot.

She gathered herself and made the journey to Kaikeyi's private quarters, scheming along the way.  Lost in her thoughts, she collided with a nobleman who was making his way to a meeting with the King.  The nobleman was angered with Manthara, and cursed her for the next fourteen years after Rama is crowned king.  He stated that the god Yama and Death will visit her in her home and take her to hell.  Manthara became frightened and ran from the nobleman, but now she had even more incentive to convince Kaikeyi to have Baharata crowned.  She decided that she would have the Queen use her second wish also, and have Dasaratha exile Rama to the forest for fourteen years in order to have Baharata establish his ways to the people of Ayodya.  Just as she gathered all her thoughts, and finalized the story she would tell the Queen, she reached the royal quarters.  She took a deep breath, and entered Kaikeyi's private room, calling her name.

(Manthara and Keikeyi)

Author's Note:

For my Storytelling post this week, I decided to write about Manthara and her influence on Rama's story, and most importantly his exile.  She seems to have been the catalyst to all the trouble, following the King's decision to make Rama his next in line to the throne.  While doing research on Manthra's character, it has been said by many sources that if she was not included in the Ramayana, that there would be no story at all!  Although her mention in this section of the reading was brief, her impact was powerful, and I was left wondering why she felt compelled to convince Kaikeyi to prevent Rama's coronation.  It was mentioned in Buck's Ramayana that Manthara has some animosity towards Rama when he shot her with an arrow in his childhood, but no other incentive for her actions was provided. When we read Narayan's version, Rama reflects on how cruel he was to Manthra when he was child, and comes to the conclusion that he played a part in his own exile. I decided to come up with the curse on her life, by the nobleman, in order to justify with why she specifically chose fourteen years for Rama's exile.

Bibliography:

Buck, William (1976). Ramayana: King Rama's Way.