Canto 2 -
Ayodhyā-kāṇḍa
Chapter 61: Kausalyā Condemns Daśaratha in Extreme Distress
Text 2.61.11
यदि पञ्चदशे वर्षे राघवः पुनरेष्यति।
जह्याद्राज्यं च कोशं च भरतेनोपभुज्यते॥
yadi pañca-daśe varṣe rāghavaḥ punar eṣyati
jahyād rājyaṁ ca kośaṁ ca bharatenopabhujyate
yadi = if; pañca-daśe = in the fifteenth; varṣe = year [from now]; rāghavaḥ = the descendant of Raghu; punaḥ eṣyati = returns; jahyāt = He would reject; rājyam ca = the kingdom; kośam = its treasury; ca = and; bharatena = by Bharata; upabhujyate = for it would have been enjoyed.
If the descendant of Raghu returns in the fifteenth year [from now], He would reject the kingdom and its treasury for it would have been enjoyed by Bharata.
Wouldn’t Rāma get the kingdom after fourteen years [of exile]? Queen Kausalyā rejects this [possibility] in this verse.
If Rāma returns on the fifteenth year [from then], He would reject the kingdom and the treasury. Why? Because it would have been enjoyed by Bharata. So, even if it is given to Rāma, He would not accept it.
In some manuscripts, bharato nopalakṣyate appears in this verse instead of bharatenopabhujyate. This indicates that even if Bharata were to give up the kingdom and the treasury, there is no indication that Rāma would accept the kingdom given to him by Bharata. There is also no indication that Bharata would give up the kingdom or the treasury when Rāma returns after fourteen years for it is impossible for one to give up a kingdom in his possession.
In some other manuscripts, bharato yadi bhokṣyate appears instead of bharatenopabhujyate. [This verse would then mean, “If the descendant of Raghu returns in the fifteenth year from now, He would reject the kingdom and treasury if Bharata were to enjoy it.”]