Sumantra, Vasiṣṭha & Viśvāmitra: What Dasharatha’s Court Means Inside Us
Question
Among the eight ministers, Sister, Sumantra is mentioned the most. Does he also have a symbolic meaning?
Answer
Absolutely—purely symbolic. Sumantra = su (excellent) + mantra (counsel). Dasharatha’s minister, Sumantra, signifies that a pure, peaceful, steady mind (Dasharatha) naturally contains excellent inner counsel.
There are other names listed too—like Dṛiṣṭi, Jaya, and others—seven in all, plus Sumantra as the eighth; each has its own meaning. The key point with Sumantra is: a pure mind does not need external advice—it is already filled with noble counsel from within.
Every character personifies one step of knowledge in the inner journey.
If Ayodhyā means a state free of inner war, that state is personified.
If excellent counsel lives within, that’s personified as Sumantra.
If action must arise from inner prompting, that’s personified as Ṛṣyaśṛṅga.
If we must be unexcited and inwardly calm, that settled state is personified as Romapāda.
So, each step of inner growth is shown as a human figure—not something external to us.
Question
If it says Vasiṣṭha is Dasharatha’s royal priest, what does that symbolize? And what about Viśvāmitra?
Answer
Vasiṣṭha means a consciousness that always seeks the higher—ever rising upward. Think of it as vertical evolution.
Viśvāmitra means a consciousness that spreads well-being all around—horizontal expansion.
The central point is the pure mind. What does that pure mind desire? That consciousness keep rising upward and never turns downward.
So the upward-seeking impulse—Vasiṣṭha—says, “Yes, perform the Aśvamedha: make the mind supremely pure and unattached.” The idea is that the mind does not stick to anything.
Question
Please interpret Aśvamedha once more.
Answer
Aśva = the mind (often symbolized as a horse); medh (from the Sanskrit verbal root with a halant) = to make pure / make excellent.
So Aśvamedha means: make the mind pure/excellent—raise the mind to its finest, most sacred condition. In outward ritual terms that becomes the Aśvamedha yajña; in spiritual terms it is the discipline that purifies the mind.
Note the difference between medh (to make pure/excellent) and medhā (intellect/insight). Here we mean medh—“to sanctify, to ennoble.”
So: purify the mind through sustained practice (yajña = a dedicated discipline). Only then will Rama descend—not into an outer house, but into the inner house: the home of the heart and mind.