King Dashrath was very happy at the birth of his sons. In his happiness, the king distributed desired gifts among the people of Ayodhya and to those who came to him to ask for something. The king and the queens were enjoying the best part of their life with the princes. Many days passed like this. And now the time had arrived for the princes to receive their names. Dashrath called sage Vashishtha to his palace. When the sage arrived, the king greeted him warmly and welcomed him to the palace. Dashrath then asked him to name his four sons according to the sage’s desire. The sage thought over the matter and then suggested that the eldest son of the king, born to his queen Kaushalya, should be named Rama. The son born to the king’s dearest queen Kaikeyi should be named Bharata. The youngest queen Sumitra had two sons out of which the elder one should be called Laxman while the youngest of all the princes should be called Shatrughna.‑ Then the sage blessed the four princes and left the palace. This way, the four princes of Ayodhya began to be called by the names given by sage Vashishtha.
PRINCES GET THEIR NAMES
