Birth and early life King
Dasharatha of
Ayodhya had three wives:
Kausalya,
Kaikeyi, and
Sumitra. Shatrughan and his elder brother
Lakshmana were born to Sumitra, while
Rama and
Bharata were born to Kausalya and Kaikeyi. In the
Ramayana, he is described as an incarnation of
Sudarshana Chakra.
Marriage to Shrutakirti After Rama won the
svayamvara of
Sita, their marriage was fixed. King
Dasharatha arrived in Mithila for his son's wedding and noticed that Lakshmana had feelings for
Urmila, but according to tradition, Bharata and
Mandavi were to marry first. King Dasharatha then arranged for Bharata to marry Mandavi and Shatrughna to marry
Shrutakirti, allowing Lakshmana to marry Urmila. Ultimately, all four sisters married the four brothers, strengthening the alliance between the two kingdoms. Shatrughna and Shrutakirti had two sons named
Subahu and
Shatrughati.
Rama's exile When Rama was exiled, Shatrughna dragged Kaikeyi's old nurse
Manthara (who was responsible for poisoning the queen's mind against Rama) and tried to kill her, but he was restrained by Bharata, who felt that Rama would not approve. Bharata went to Rama and asked him to come back to Ayodhya, but Rama refused. Bharata ruled Ayodhya from Nandigram and was an excellent leader, acting as the very embodiment of dharma. Although Bharata was the king designate of Ayodhya during Rama's exile, it was Shatrughna who undertook of the administration of the whole kingdom during Rama's absence. Shatrughna was the only solace for the three queen mothers during the absence of Rama, Lakshmana, and Bharata from Ayodhya.
Rage against Manthara Manthara appears only once in the
Ramayana after Rama's banishment. Having been rewarded by Kaikeyi with costly clothing and jewels, she was walking in the palace gardens when Bharata and his half-brother Shatrughna came upon her. Seeing her, Shatrughna flew into a violent rage over Rama's banishment and decided to attack her. Kaikeyi begged Bharata to save her, which he did, telling Shatrughna that it would be a sin to kill a woman, and that Rama would be furious with both of them if he did such a thing. He relented and the brothers left, while Kaikeyi attempted to comfort Manthara.
Slaying of Lavanasura Although he played a relatively minor role in the
Ramayana, Shatrughna was important to the main story and goal of the epic. His chief exploit was the killing of
Lavanasura, the demon King of Madhupura (
Mathura), who was a nephew of
Ravana, the King of
Lanka, slain by Rama. Lavanasura was the son of Madhu, the pious demon-king after whom the city of Madhupura was named. Madhu's wife and Lavanusara's mother Kumbhini was a sister of
Ravana. Lavanasura was holder of the divine
Trishula (Trident) of Lord
Shiva, and nobody was able to kill him or prevent him from committing sinful activities. Shatrughna requested Rama and his elder brothers to allow him the opportunity to serve them by killing Lavanasura. Shatrughna killed the demon with an arrow imbibed with the power of
Vishnu. After Lavanasura's death, Rama crowned him King of Madhupura.
Death Shatrughna divided his kingdom consisting of
Madhupura and
Vidisha between his sons
Subahu and
Shatrughati. After Rama, the seventh
Avatar of
Vishnu completed 11,000 years of perfectly pious rule upon earth, walked into the river
Sarayu to return to his true and eternal
Mahavishnu form,
Bharata and Shatrughna also followed him into the river and later merged into
Mahavishnu.{{cite book ==Assessment==