It is by the virtue of the Dharma that the earth exists at her place. King Dashrath of Ayodhya had always followed the path of Dharma for the well being of his subjects. He had 3 wives- Kaushalya, Kaikayee and Sumitra. Kaikayee was the middle queen. Bharat was the son of Kaikayee.

Since his birth, Bharat was the dearest to Lord Rama. He felt happy in the happiness of the Lord Rama. He had nothing like ego in him. Bharat was very shy in nature. He always remained shy before his elder brother Rama. Such a shy and affectionate boy, when he came to know that his mother, Kaikayee had awarded Lord Rama an exile for 14 years just to make him the king, he felt extreme pain. He began to curse his mother in harsh words. But even then, he could not see anyone in pain. Learning about Rama's exile and the conspiracy of Manthara, Kaikayee's maid behind it, Shatrughana the younger of the 4 brothers and the son of Sumitra began to beat Manthara. But Bharat rescued her out of kindness. Then bearing full patience, Bharat and Shatrughana performed the last rites of their father, Dashrat. Thereafter, they set out for Chitrakoot to bring back Rama. He had also arranged for the security of their kingdom. But he had no greed himself for such a prosperous kingdom as Ayodhya. His only thought was: " My brother Rama and Lakshman and sister-in-law Sita would be roaming here and there, on bare foot in the forests. Such a thought made him feel sorry for them.

Thus when he reached the hermitage of sage Bharadwaj, he said: " Lack of food and clothes is the greatest sorrow in the world. Even the most downtrodden people take measure to protect themselves from the extreme summer and winter. Even they managed to get at least a broken cot to rest on for the night. But my Lord does not even have that today. He is wearing clothes of bark, eating bitter fruits and sleeps on the bed of the grass. He has nothing to protect himself from extreme cold, heat and the rains. I am feeling sad for that."

All along the way, Bharat observed fast, ate root and slept on the ground and walked bare foot despite having a chariot. He found it immoral to accept any comfort while his brother was suffering in the forests. Bharat's love and affection for his brother Rama is really unequal. Because of that very love, he wanted Rama to return and take over as the king. But he had to bow before the firm determination of Rama. Bharat had such a divine affection for Rama that could have melted even the stones. If anyone recited 'Rama' or showed anything related to 'Rama', Bharat could not contain himself and used to embrace him affectionately.

Ultimately, Bharat reached Chitrakoot. There he took bath in the holy Mandakini river. Then accompanied by his brother, teachers and mothers and the king Nishida Raja, he set out towards the place where Lord Rama was staying. Even then he feared lest Rama should hide away from him. There at Chitrakoot, he met Rama. Even Janak, the king of Mithila also reached there. But no one including the sages Vashishta and Vishwamitra and king Janak could utter even a word. They had a discussion then kept quiet. Only Janak knew the greatness of Bharat. He therefore said to his queen Sunaina in isolation: " Shri Rama is gracious to his devotees. He has profound devotion for Bharat. He can abdicate everything for Bharat."

Everything that is dear to Shri Rama or pleases him or does not hurt him (Rama) is the same for Bharat also. It does not matter to Bharat how much anything hurt him but he could not bear to see the pain even a little borne by him. Hence despite being reluctant of occupying Ayodhya's throne, Bharat returned to Ayodhya with Shri Rama's slippers just to keep his orders. There he put those slippers on the throne. He had no liking for the throne without the real occupant. It was not possible for him to enjoy the luxuries while his brother Rama is suffering in pain in the forest. Hence, outside Ayodhya, he dug out a small pit at Nandigram and laying a small seat of grass in it, took a sitting posture for full 14 years. He also observed Gomuj- Yavak Vrata (feeding a cow with barley and recovering the undigested grains from the dung and cooking them in cow's urine). Thus, he sustained himself for the 14 years on barley recovered from the cow's dung and cooked in cow's urine.

Lord Rama came to know of Bharat's hard penance. Hence, he sent Hanuman to meet Bharat earlier. After conquering Lanka and killing Ravana, when Rama himself came on Pushpak Vimana, he saw Bharat in hard penance, with long tussock like hair, coming to greet him carrying his slippers on his head. Rama could not hold himself then and embraced Bharat. It is clear here that Bharat and Rama are just 2 parts of a single entity. Even while observing hard penance at Nandigram, Bharat had always been engaged in Rama's service and hence enjoyed his proximity.