अष्टपञ्चाशः सर्गः (Sarga 58)
Daśaratha Questions Sumantra; Messages from the Forest Threshold
सर्वप्रजाभिरामं हि रामं प्रव्राज्य धार्मिकम्।सर्वलोकं विरुध्येमं कथं राजा भविष्यसि।।।।
sarvaprajābhirāmaṃ hi rāmaṃ pravrājya dhārmikam |
sarvalokaṃ virudhyemaṃ kathaṃ rājā bhaviṣyasi ||
Nachdem du den rechtschaffenen Rama, die Freude aller Untertanen, verbannt hast und dich damit gegen die ganze Welt stellst—wie willst du da noch König sein?
When she saw me leaving, she looked at her husband with a dry (pale) face and suddenly burst into tears.
Rājadharma: kingship is not mere power but moral alignment with dharma and the people’s welfare; violating it voids true sovereignty.
A moral challenge is posed to the king: exile of Rama risks total loss of popular and ethical legitimacy.
Rama’s righteousness and popularity; Lakshmana’s insistence on ethical governance.