Ramayana — Bala Kanda, Sarga 67, Shloka 10
शिवधनुर्दर्शनं—रामेण धनुर्भङ्गश्च
The Showing of Śiva’s Bow and Rama’s Breaking of It
क्व गतिर्मानुषाणां च धनुषोऽस्य प्रपूरणे।आरोपणे समायोगे वेपने तोलनेऽपि वा।।।।
kva gatir mānuṣāṇāṃ ca dhanuṣo 'sya prapūraṇe | āropaṇe samāyoge vepane tolane 'pi vā || 1.67.10 ||
„Welche Möglichkeit haben bloße Menschen bei diesem Bogen – ihn zu biegen, die Sehne aufzulegen, den Pfeil anzusetzen, ihn zurückzuziehen oder ihn auch nur anzuheben?“
How then can men bend, string, fix the arrow, pull the string and lift it?
FAQs
Humility before the sacred: dharma includes knowing one’s limits and recognizing that divine instruments demand exceptional worth and discipline.
Janaka emphasizes the bow’s extraordinary weight and difficulty, implying that ordinary people cannot even handle it.
Janaka’s prudence—he frames the challenge realistically and safeguards the sanctity of the test.