Valmiki Ramayana 2.63.45 — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 63, Shloka 45
दशरथस्य शोकानुचिन्तनं शब्धवेधि-दोषस्मरणं च
Daśaratha’s grief, karmic reflection, and the remembered ‘śabdavedhī’ misdeed
जानन्नपि च किं कुर्यादशक्तिरपरिक्रमः।भिद्यमानमिवाशक्त स्त्रतुमन्यो नगो नगम्।।2.63.45।।
jānann api ca kiṃ kuryād aśaktir aparikramaḥ |
bhidyamānam ivāśaktaḥ trātum anyo nagaḥ nagam ||2.63.45||
ولو علم بذلك، فماذا عسى أبي العاجز الذي لا يقدر على الحركة أن يفعل؟ إنه كالشجرة التي لا تستطيع إنقاذ شجرة أخرى تُقطع، لا حيلة له.
'What can my weak father who has no strength to walk do, even if he knows about it? Like a tree which cannot protect another which is being severed, he is helpless.
FAQs
It stresses accountability: when the vulnerable cannot remedy harm, the moral burden falls even more heavily on the agent who caused it.
Śravaṇa explains that his father, old and immobile, cannot come to rescue him even if informed.
Clarity and realism: Śravaṇa speaks without exaggeration, using a vivid analogy to convey helplessness.
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