Ramayana — Yuddha Kanda, Sarga 35, Shloka 12
माल्यवानुपदेशः
Malyavan’s Counsel, Portents in Laṅkā, and the Proposal of Alliance
असृजद्भगवान्पक्षौद्वावेनहिपितामहः ।।।।सुराणामसुराणांचधर्माधर्मौतदाश्रयौ ।
asṛjad bhagavān pakṣau dvāv eva na hi pitāmahaḥ | surāṇām asurāṇāṁ ca dharmādharmau tad-āśrayau |
“For the blessed Pitāmaha (Brahmā) indeed created two opposing sides—gods and asuras—who took their stand upon dharma and adharma respectively.”
"The divine Brahma, the grandfather of the universe created two orders, deities and devils. They took the refuge of virtues and vices respectively."
FAQs
Human choices align with larger moral polarities: one must choose dharma as one’s refuge rather than adharma, which leads to ruin.
The advisor frames the conflict as a dharma–adharma divide, urging Rāvaṇa to see the moral structure behind the war.
Moral instruction (nīti) grounded in tradition—using cosmological framing to correct a ruler’s wrongdoing.