Shloka 59
Instruction to Śatrughna and the Mobilization for Rāma’s Aśvamedha
यो हन्याद्विमदं मत्तं सुप्तं मग्नं भयातुरम् । तावकोऽहं ब्रुवाणं च स व्रजत्यधमां गतिम्
yo hanyādvimadaṃ mattaṃ suptaṃ magnaṃ bhayāturam | tāvako'haṃ bruvāṇaṃ ca sa vrajatyadhamāṃ gatim
من يقتل رجلاً أعزل، أو سكران، أو نائمًا، أو غارقًا، أو مضطربًا من الخوف—وكذلك من يقول: «أنا لك» طالبًا الملجأ—فإنه يمضي إلى أدنى مراتب الوجود.
Unspecified in the provided excerpt (context needed from surrounding verses to identify the dialogue pair).
Concept: Harming the defenseless—unarmed, intoxicated, asleep, drowning, fear-stricken, or surrendered—incurs severe karmic downfall.
Application: Refuse ‘cheap wins’: do not exploit impaired, vulnerable, or dependent people; build strength without predation; practice protective leadership.
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Type: celestial_realm
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A stark moral vision overlays the battlefield: shadowy forms of the ‘lowest realms’ yawn beneath the feet of a warrior poised to strike the helpless. Above, a luminous dharma-scale appears, tipping toward darkness when the surrendered is harmed, warning of karmic descent.","primary_figures":["a warrior about to strike","a surrendered figure with folded hands","person drowning at river edge (symbolic vignette)","a spectral dharma-personification or sage-voice"],"setting":"Battlefield dissolving into a symbolic underworld chasm; vignettes of the vulnerable—sleeping, intoxicated, drowning—arrayed like moral exemplars.","lighting_mood":"moonlit","color_palette":["charcoal black","ashen white","blood maroon","cold violet","pale gold"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: dramatic moral allegory—central warrior halted by a radiant dharma-emblem; gold leaf used for the warning aura and cosmic scales; beneath, stylized dark underworld opening with ornate borders; rich reds and greens contrasted with deep blacks; expressive faces showing fear and remorse.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: narrative panel with multiple small scenes—sleeping soldier, intoxicated man, drowning figure, surrendered supplicant—each delicately painted; a thin, misty underworld band at the bottom; restrained palette with cool night tones and a fine golden line indicating dharma’s boundary.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold outlines and symbolic composition—underworld as a dark semicircle below, dharma aura above; figures with large eyes conveying warning; red/yellow/green pigments with black dominance for the ‘adhamā gati’ zone.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: transform warning into devotional ethics—central refuge-seeker framed by lotus medallions; border panels depict the five vulnerable states; deep indigo ground with gold motifs; subtle shankha-chakra patterns indicating Viṣṇu’s protective law."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"fast-dramatic","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["low thunder","conch blast","sudden hush","distant lament","echoing drum"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: हन्यात्+विमदम् → हन्याद्विमदम्; तावकः+अहम् → तावकोऽहम् (अ+अ → ओऽ); भयातुरम् = भय+आतुरम् (तत्पुरुष).
FAQs
It condemns violence against the helpless—those asleep, intoxicated, drowning, or terrified—and especially against a person who explicitly seeks protection or surrender.
It means “one who says ‘I am yours’,” i.e., a person placing themselves under another’s protection; harming such a surrendered person is treated as a grave sin.
The verse states that the killer “goes to the lowest destination” (adhamā gati), implying severe karmic and moral downfall.