Ayodhya Kand
Analysis
Here, on the spiritual level, who is Kaikeyi? And who is Mantharā, Kaikeyi’s maid? They are not physical people. So let us reflect on them a little. Before understanding Mantharā, we must first understand Kaikeyi. What does Kaikeyi represent?
Long ago, when this was contemplated, it became clear that Dasharatha represents our pure, steady mind. The word Dasharatha means “the one whose chariot is made of ten”—the ten being the five organs of knowledge and the five organs of action. These ten senses form the chariot on which the mind sits. These senses bring experiences from the outside world and deliver them to the mind. When these ten senses are pure, the mind that sits upon them is also pure. Thus, Dasharatha represents a pure, steady, and sacred mind.
Now, it is said here that this Dasharatha—this pure, stable mind—always lives with three powers. These three powers, always accompanying the pure mind, are:
Jñāna-shakti — the power of knowledge, represented by Kausalyā. This power always stays with a pure mind.
Kriyā-shakti — the power of action, represented by Sumitrā. This power ensures that knowledge does not remain dry; it converts knowledge into living conduct.
Icchā-shakti — the power of desire or intention, represented by Kaikeyi.
But what is this Icchā-shakti called Kaikeyi? Desire can take countless forms, but the desire represented by Kaikeyi is the desire that one’s personality should develop completely and holistically—not one-sidedly.
What is one-sided development? Focusing only on material aspects—house, wealth, property. That is incomplete development. Kaikeyi, the desire-power, wants development in all dimensions: mental, emotional, and spiritual as well as material. She wants the personality to grow in all directions.
So Kaikeyi is not a woman; she is the desire-power that accompanies the pure mind.
Now look at the three powers again:
The pure mind naturally moves toward knowledge (Kausalyā).
Kriyā-shakti (Sumitrā) ensures that knowledge gets implemented in life.
And the third power, Icchā-shakti—Kaikeyi—is called “dushṭā,” troublesome or dangerous. Why?
Because Icchā-shakti can both raise a person and ruin a person. For example, imagine a child who has just passed grade twelve. Simple options lie ahead—medicine, engineering, commerce. But his inner desire-power may say, “I don’t want any of these. I want to pursue spirituality. I want to become a renunciate.” Materially this seems harmful. Parents panic. But this is what Icchā-shakti does—it bends the direction of life.
Now, Dasharatha—the pure mind—desired a “son,” meaning he desired spiritual knowledge, self-realization, the birth of Ram. The pure mind wants to attain the moment when it stops identifying with the body and recognizes itself as the Self.
Dasharatha attained Ram. But once the pure mind attains self-knowledge, it becomes attached to it. It clings to the bliss of realization and thinks, “I have recognized myself; this is enough.” But simply knowing the Self is not enough. Self-knowledge must be used further. Yet the pure mind becomes attached to it.
This is where Icchā-shakti—Kaikeyi—intervenes. Kaikeyi wants the personality to grow fully. She does not want Ram (self-knowledge) to sit only on the conscious mind. She wants Ram to go into the depths.
Why? Because along with the conscious mind, every person has a deep subconscious mind full of impressions—anger, desire, greed, attachment, ego. The conscious mind is constantly influenced by the subconscious. A little spark of anger can instantly awaken a whole world of stored anger from the subconscious.
So if the subconscious is not purified, the conscious mind can never remain steady.
Kaikeyi, the desire for complete development, says:
“Self-knowledge is not enough; the subconscious must also be cleansed.”
Thus, Kaikeyi wants Ram not to be crowned. Meaning: self-knowledge should not be limited to the conscious mind. It must be taken into the depths—to purify the subconscious.
This Kaikeyi works at two levels.
First level:
She prevents the mind from falling. In difficult situations the pure mind slips and thinks, “Maybe a little wrong action will not matter.” But Icchā-shakti—the desire for complete development—stops it. It prevents the pure mind from collapsing. The story of Shambara in the Devāsura war is included only to show this: Kaikeyi (Icchā-shakti) saved Dasharatha (the pure mind) in crisis.
Second level:
Icchā-shakti awakens a deep memory—a memory carried across lifetimes—that full development is necessary. This memory was symbolized as two boons preserved for the future. When self-knowledge arises, this ancient memory awakens. This memory is called Mantharā.
Why Mantharā?
Manthar means “slow.” This memory moves slowly across births, but when the right moment arrives—when the mind becomes attached to self-knowledge instead of using it—this memory awakens. That awakening is symbolized as Mantharā appearing.
Mantharā tells Kaikeyi (the desire-power):
“Do not let Ram be crowned. Self-knowledge must go into the forest—into the subconscious—where the demons (inner defects) live.”
In the Ramayana, the forest and Lanka represent the subconscious mind. The demons are the deep-rooted tendencies. And only Ram—self-knowledge—can destroy them.
So Mantharā tells Kaikeyi to send Ram to the forest. Meaning:
Use self-knowledge to purify the subconscious.
If this episode were removed from the Ramayana, Ram would be crowned too early and the demons of the lower regions would rise and destroy the kingdom. This symbolically means: if we cling to self-knowledge at the surface, without purifying the subconscious, our inner defects will rise and destroy our spiritual progress.
Thus Kaikeyi—Icchā-shakti—is essential. She is called “dushṭā” because she disrupts comfort. She bends life’s circumstances. She does not allow us to remain stuck at the material or mental level. She keeps pushing us upward.
Mantharā is the memory carried across lifetimes that insists that the personality must grow on all four levels—material, mental, emotional, and spiritual. When the right moment comes, this memory awakens and joins with Icchā-shakti to push us toward deeper growth.
So when self-knowledge arises (Dasharatha receiving Ram), the desire-power (Kaikeyi) and the ancient memory (Mantharā) push self-knowledge into the forest—to destroy the defects lying deep within.
Thus, Kaikeyi is not low or negative. She is the force that elevates us. Without her, Ram would never go to the forest, and the purpose of the Ramayana—destroying inner demons—would never be accomplished.
Kaikeyi is the intense desire for complete development.
Mantharā is the slow-moving memory that awakens when needed.
This is how the inner journey progresses.