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JAIN RAMAYAN
have any interest in the samsar, worldly delights, prosperity and splendour in the absence of Lakshman. This palace and this prosperity will only cause him anguish" Lav forecast the future of Shri Ramchandra in an impartial manner. He had this doubt and a truth lay concealed in it. The separation from Lakshman caused the greatest anguish to him and as soon as his deep attachment for Lakshman disappeared, he would surely renounce the samsar. In the absence of Lakshman, the samsar would appear fruitless and meaningless to him. Lav knew this truth very well. Therefore, suddenly a new idea arose in his mind.
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"Kush! Let us suppose that our father will not consent to our becoming sadhus. In that case, should we remain in the samsar? Can we remain in the samsar? Please, think about this point deeply and even this is a truth that we are not disrespecting our father. We can never think of disrespecting our father, who is the greatest of men. Moreover, it is also a fact that in his present mental state, he will not give his consent. Therefore, the best thing is to place before him our decision and to go away. We shall abandon Ayodhya and pursue the path of Samyam, in order to obtain a lasting deliverance from the samsar.
Kush stood at the window of his palace, Lav also did the same thing. This window generally revealed to the beholder, the beauty and the magnificence of Ayodhya but on that day, it revealed the darkness of sorrow that had enveloped the city. It revealed the deep gloom and anguish that enveloped the city. Lav and Kush were silent and still but their minds were not. Their eyes were fixed on the city of Ayodhya but they were not observing the grosser and larger aspects of the city; on the contrary, they were probing its subleties. Sometime passed thus. Lav stroked the shoulders of Kush and said in a serious voice.
"There lies in our souls a denser darkness than the darkness that we see enveloping the city. Our souls are full of the darkness of ignorance. In the darkness of ignorance, a jiva cannot see the truth about the world and naturally he develops attach
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