Valmiki Ramayana 2.114.13: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 114, Shloka 13

अयोध्याप्रवेशः

Bharata Enters Ayodhya and Perceives the City’s Desolation

Devanagari script

सम्मूढनिगमांस्तब्धां संक्षिप्तविपणापणाम्। प्रच्छन्नशशिनक्षत्रां द्यामिवाम्बुधरैर्वृताम्।।2.114.13।।

Sanskrit recitationValmiki Ramayana 2.114.13

Transliteration

sammūḍha-nigamāṃ stabdhāṃ saṅkṣipta-vipaṇāpaṇām | pracchanna-śaśi-nakṣatrāṃ dyām ivāmbudharair vṛtām ||

Translation

Da die Händler verwirrt waren, die Stadt erstarrte und Märkte wie Läden geschlossen, glich Ayodhyā dem von Wolken bedeckten Himmel, in dem Mond und Sterne verborgen sind.

Ask anything about this verse...Ask

Word by Word

• सम्मूढनिगमाम्: with merchants bewildered
• सम्मूढनिगमाम्: Upamāna (उपमान) (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम्मूढ + निगम (प्रातिपदिके) (समास)
• Form: तत्पुरुषः (सम्मूढाः निगमा यस्याम्); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘with merchants bewildered’

• स्तब्धाम्: stilled
• स्तब्धाम्: Upamāna (उपमान) (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्तब्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘stilled, motionless’

• संक्षिप्तविपणापणाम्: with markets and shops closed
• संक्षिप्तविपणापणाम्: Upamāna (उपमान) (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: संक्षिप्त + विपणि + आपण (प्रातिपदिके) (समास)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमासः; संक्षिप्त (क्त, ‘closed/contracted’); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘with shops and markets shut’

• प्रच्छन्नशशिनक्षत्राम्: with moon and stars hidden
• प्रच्छन्नशशिनक्षत्राम्: Upamāna (उपमान) (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रच्छन्न + शशि + नक्षत्र (प्रातिपदिके) (समास)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमासः; प्रच्छन्न (क्त, ‘covered/hidden’); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘with moon and stars obscured’

• द्याम्: the sky
• द्याम्: Upamāna (उपमान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्यु/द्यौ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• इव: like
• इव: Upamā-dyotaka (उपमा-द्योतक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (उपमा-सूचक)

• अम्बुधरैः: by clouds
• अम्बुधरैः: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अम्बुधर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण/instrumental), बहुवचन

• वृताम्: covered
• वृताम्: Upamāna (उपमान) (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वृ (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘covered’

Context

Ayodhya with its markets and shops closed, and its merchants in a daze looked like the sky covered with clouds obscuring the Moon and stars.

Characters & Entities

• Ayodhyā

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

A dharmic kingdom supports social confidence and orderly livelihood; when righteousness is shaken by injustice and sorrow, even everyday economic life becomes paralyzed.

What is the narrative situation?

Bharata finds Ayodhyā muted and unsettled; the narrator depicts civic shutdown through the clouded-sky comparison.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

The implied virtue is rajadharma—rulers must preserve public stability so that fear and confusion do not ‘cover’ society like clouds.