Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 65, Shloka 25
अयोध्याकाण्डे पञ्चषष्टितमः सर्गः — Daśaratha’s Death Discovered in the Palace
Morning Rites Turn to Lament
ततस्सर्वा नरेन्द्रस्य कैकेयीप्रमुखाः स्त्रियः।रुदन्त्य श्शोकसन्तप्ता निपेतुर्गतचेतनाः।।।।
tatas sarvā narendrasya kaikeyīpramukhāḥ striyaḥ | rudantyaḥ śokasantaptā nipetur gatacetanāḥ ||
Then all the king’s wives—led by Kaikeyī—burning with grief and weeping, lost consciousness and fell down.
Then all the wives of the king led by Kaikeyi, burning with grief and weeping, lost their senses and fell down.
FAQs
The verse implicitly warns that actions affecting dharma in the household and kingdom culminate in collective suffering; grief becomes indiscriminate, touching even those who were agents of painful decisions.
All the queens, including Kaikeyī, collapse in grief upon the king’s death.
Human vulnerability is emphasized more than virtue; the verse levels all characters under the force of bereavement.