Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 48, Shloka 28
अयोध्यायाः शोकवर्णनम्
Ayodhya’s Lament and Civic Desolation
मिथ्याप्रव्राजितो राम स्ससीत स्सहलक्ष्मणः।भरते सन्निसृष्टास्स्म स्सौनिके पशवो यथा।।2.48.28।।
mithyāpravrājito rāmaḥ sasītaḥ sahalakṣmaṇaḥ |
bharate sannisṛṣṭāḥ sma saunike paśavo yathā || 2.48.28 ||
সীতা ও লক্ষ্মণসহ রামকে প্রতারণায় নির্বাসিত করা হয়েছে; আর আমরা ভরতকে সঁপে দেওয়া হয়েছি—যেন কসাইয়ের হাতে তুলে দেওয়া গবাদি পশু।
Rama, elder brother to Lakshmana is a tiger among men, a subduer of enemies, powerful like an intoxicated elephant, and a great charioteer. Blue in complexion, he has a face like the full Moon. He has lotus-like eyes, knee-long arms and fleshy clavicles. Endowed with a sweet nature, he always speaks the truth and the first to speak to others. When he roams the forest, charming like the Moon and pleasing to the whole world, he will surely make it look graceful.
FAQs
It condemns deceit as a violation of dharma: a righteous order cannot be established through falsehood, especially when it harms the innocent and destabilizes the moral center of the kingdom.
The people of Ayodhyā react to Rāma’s exile, feeling abandoned and unsafe, fearing they are now at the mercy of political power rather than protected by righteousness.
Rāma’s moral centrality is implied: his removal is felt as the removal of protection rooted in dharma, showing how a virtuous leader becomes a refuge for society.