Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 48, Shloka 34
अयोध्यायाः शोकवर्णनम्
Ayodhya’s Lament and Civic Desolation
नष्टज्वलनसन्तापा प्रशान्ताध्यायसत्कथा।तिमिरेणाभिलिप्तेव सा तदा नगरी बभौ।।2.48.34।।
naṣṭajvalanasantāpā praśāntādhyāyasatkathā |
timireṇābhiliptā iva sā tadā nagarī babhau || 2.48.34 ||
তখন নগরী যেন অন্ধকারে লেপিত হয়ে উঠল; যজ্ঞাগ্নির উষ্ণতা নিভে গেল, আর বেদাধ্যয়ন ও সৎকথার ধ্বনিও স্তব্ধ হয়ে গেল।
With sacrificial fires extinguished and the reading of holy scriptures and sacred recitations stopped, Ayodhya looked as if besmeared with darkness.
FAQs
Dharma is sustained by both righteous leadership and daily sacred practice; when the moral center is shaken, even ritual and learning lose vitality.
Night descends on a city whose religious and cultural routines have halted due to grief over Rāma’s exile.
Rāma’s role as a dharmic anchor: his absence disrupts not only politics but also the city’s spiritual rhythm.