Vasishta said to Bharata who was still in a state of shock, "Enough of grieving Bharata, let us think of the funeral rites of the king." Dasaratha's body was taken out of the casket of preserving oils, to lay in state on a couch studded with every possible gem. Beholding Dasaratha as he lay like one in a deep slumber, Bharata wept for him whose love he had lost forever and whose embrace would no longer gather him into its protective warmth. He wept for an Ayodhya, that was orphaned and the earth feeling widowed also wept for her lord.

Citizens of Ayodhya lined its thoroughfares to catch a glimpse of their beloved monarch who was about to set out on his last journey upon the earth. They showered flowers made of gold and silver on the body. Priests, Brahmins, the queens along with Bharata and Satrughna circumambulated the pyre. Bharata then touched it with the sacrificial fire and lit it.