Shatrughan – The young brother with big responsibilities

Being the youngest of the family has its advantages, and Shatrughan definitely enjoyed them. The son of Queen Sumitra and the twin brother of Lakshman, Shatrughan was the adorable youngest brother among the four. But, being the youngest of all did not mean that he was the spoilt one, but he was the one who understood the responsibilities of his elder brothers more than anyone else.

Shatrughan was also called Ripudaman. Since childhood, he learnt the values of respect, humility and care for the elder ones in the family. Just as Lakshman served Shri Ram, Shatrughan was devoted to Bharat like a shadow which never leaves the body. He was married to Shrutakirti, the daughter of Kushadhwaja and the cousin of Sita.

During the tragic events when Shri Ram left for the forest and Maharaj Dasarath died, Shatrughan was away with Bharat at his maternal uncle’s kingdom. When they both reach Ayodhya and come to know about the disastrous happenings, Bharat gets depressed with sorrow, but Shatrughan gets enraged. He comes to know that Manthara is behind the entire evil scheme, thrashes her in anger and raises his sword to kill her. But Bharat stops him saying that if Shatrughan kills Manthara, Shri Ram would never forgive them. On Bharat’s command, Shatrughan spares Manthara. This shows that although Shatrughan was a silent brother, it did not mean that he kept quite when something was not right.

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He accompanies Bharat to persuade Shri Ram to come back to Ayodhya. Shri Ram is mighty pleased to see his younger brothers at Chitrakut. However, Shri Ram does not agree to return back. Hence, Bharat gets the padukas of Shri Ram, places them on the throne and takes the responsibility as a representative of Shri Ram to govern Ayodhya. Bharat entrusts the responsibility of the mothers and the royal palace to Shatrughan and leaves for Nandigram.

The biggest responsibility of giving solace to the depressed mothers falls on the youngest of all. He takes up not only the responsibility of taking care of all of their needs and comforting them during these difficult times, but also duly assists Bharat in the administrative affairs of the kingdom. Shatrughan saw that no problem disturbed Bharat as he was well aware that Bharat was already in lot of pain. Shatrughan was equally distressed by separation from his brothers, but he hid it and ensured smooth running of all affairs of Ayodhya. Due to his diligence, the kingdom functioned smoothly till Shri Ram returned back. He continued to serve his elder brothers in the same way after the coronation of Shri Ram.

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Shatrughan was a great warrior too. As his name suggests, he was the killer of the enemies. When the rishis approach Shri Ram to save them from the misery of Lavanasur, who was ruling over Mathura, Shatrughan requests Shri Ram to send him to kill Lavanasur and serve his brothers in this way too, as he never got a chance to prove his warrior skills. Shri Ram totally believes in him and crowns him as king of Mathura beforehand and sends him to war.

Shtraughan fights valorously, kills Lavanasur and establishes peace and prosperity in Mathura, making it as prosperous as Ayodhya. Thus he proves himself a worthy of his elder brothers in all ways. He sets an example that sometimes it becomes the duty of the younger ones in the family to take the big responsibilities during hardships and making the family strong from all ends.