Shloka 13

शरत्प्रवेशे रामविलापः तथा सुग्रीवप्रमादे लक्ष्मणप्रेषणम्

Autumn’s Onset: Rama’s Lament and Lakshmana Sent to Sugriva

Devanagari script

एवमादि नरश्रेष्ठो विललाप नृपात्मजः।विहङ्ग इव सारङ्गस्सलिलं त्रिदशेश्वरात्।।

Transliteration

evamādi naraśreṣṭho vilalāpa nṛpātmajaḥ |

vihaṅga iva sāraṅgaḥ salilaṃ tridaśeśvarāt ||4.30.13||

Translation

So klagte der Fürstensohn, der Beste unter den Menschen, auf vielerlei Weise—wie der Vogel sāraṅga, der nach Wasser zu Indra, dem Herrn der Götter, ruft.

Word by Word

• evam-ādi: thus and so on
• evam-ādi: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyayībhāva compound used adverbially: ‘beginning with thus’

• naraśreṣṭhaḥ: the best of men
• naraśreṣṭhaḥ: Kartā (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa: ‘best among men’

• vilalāpa: lamented
• vilalāpa: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √lap (धातु) with vi- (उपसर्ग)
• Form: Laṅ-lakāra (Imperfect/Past), Parasmaipada, Prathama-puruṣa, Ekavacana

• nṛpātmajaḥ: the prince
• nṛpātmajaḥ: Kartā (कर्ता; apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpa + ātmaja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa: ‘king’s son’

• vihaṅgaḥ: a bird
• vihaṅgaḥ: Upamāna (उपमान; in simile)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vihaṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• iva: like
• iva: Upamā (उपमा)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iva (अव्यय)
• Form: Upamā-avyaya (comparison particle)

• sāraṅgaḥ: sāraṅga (a kind of bird/deer)
• sāraṅgaḥ: Kartā (कर्ता; in simile-clause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sāraṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; subject of implied comparison (a sāraṅga bird/deer per context)

• salilam: water
• salilam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: salila (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana

• tridaśeśvarāt: from the lord of the gods (Indra)
• tridaśeśvarāt: Apādāna (अपादान; source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tridaśa + īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Pañcamī (Ablative/5th), Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa: ‘lord of the gods’

Context

Thus the best among the princes wailed just as chakrabaka laments for water fromIndra, lord of the gods.

Characters & Entities

• Rāma
• Indra (Tridaśeśvara)

FAQs

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

The verse frames grief within restraint: even the righteous may lament, but the narrative uses poetic simile to keep suffering intelligible and directed toward rightful action.

What is the narrative situation?

The narrator summarizes Rāma’s continuing lamentations and compares them to a bird’s desperate cry for life-sustaining water.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Human authenticity joined to dignity: Rāma’s sorrow is not moral collapse but a truthful response that precedes renewed resolve.