Shloka 18

सीताव्यथा

वर्णनम् / Sītā’s Distress and Rāvaṇa’s Attempt at Coercive Allurement

Devanagari script

सुकुमारीं सुजाताङ्गीं रत्नगर्भगृहोचिताम्।तप्यमानामिवोष्णेन मृणालीमचिरोद्धृताम्।।।।

Transliteration

sukumārīṃ sujātāṅgīṃ ratnagarbhagṛhocitām |

tapyamānām ivoṣṇena mṛṇālīm aciroddhṛtām ||

Translation

Zart, von schön gebildeten Gliedern, würdig, in einem juwelenerfüllten Palast zu wohnen—nun glich sie einem eben gepflückten Lotusstängel, von Hitze versengt.

Word by Word

• sukumārīm: very delicate
• sukumārīm: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su-kumāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारयः (अतिशयेन कुमारी/कोमला), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• sujātāṅgīm: having well-formed limbs
• sujātāṅgīm: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su-jāta + aṅgī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुव्रीहिः (सुजातानि अङ्गानि यस्याः सा), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• ratnagarbha-gṛha-ucitām: fit for a gem-inlaid house
• ratnagarbha-gṛha-ucitām: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ratna + garbha + gṛha + ucita (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषः; (रत्नगर्भं गृहम्) रत्नगर्भगृहं, तस्मिन् उचितः/उचिता; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• tapyamānām: being scorched
• tapyamānām: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tap (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमानकृदन्त (शानच्), कर्मणि-प्रयोगार्थः; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; present passive participle

• iva: like
• iva: Upamā-dyotaka (उपमाद्योतक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iva (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमावाचक-अव्यय

• uṣṇena: by heat
• uṣṇena: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: uṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; neuter instrumental singular; ‘heat’

• mṛṇālīm: lotus-stalk
• mṛṇālīm: Upamāna (उपमान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mṛṇālī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• acira-uddhṛtām: just plucked out
• acira-uddhṛtām: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-cira + ud-hṛ (धातु)
• Form: अव्ययीभावः (अचिरम् = not long ago) + क्त-प्रत्ययान्त ‘उद्धृत’; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

Context

She was sighing heavily in intense grief like a royal female elephant tied to a pillar and separated from her lord, the leader of the herd.

FAQs

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

Dharma demands protection and proper care for those who are vulnerable. The verse stresses the injustice of displacing the rightful (a queenly figure) into conditions of torment.

What is the narrative situation?

Sītā’s fragility and suffering are highlighted by contrasting her deserving royal comfort with her present harsh reality.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Dignity and purity: like a lotus-stalk, she symbolizes stainlessness, made to suffer by external heat rather than inner fault.