Nandigrama is a
village outside of Ayodhya in the Ramayana, the earlier of the two major Hindu
epics, where Prince Bharata sets up the royal court while his brother Rama is
away.
Bharata's mother, Kaikeyi, uses her power to exile Rama for
fourteen years and install Bharata as king in his stead.
Bharata agrees to function as the interim king at Rama's
request, but with two symbolic changes.
The first is that Bharata transfers the royal court from
Ayodhya to Nandigrama as a metaphor of Rama's exile; the second is that during
his regency, Bharata sits at the foot of the royal throne, on which a pair of
Rama's shoes are put, symbolizing that Rama is the legitimate king.
As a result, Nandigrama represents Bharata's righteousness.
