Shloka 12
लक्ष्मण-प्राणरक्षा:
Lakshmana’s Revival by the Herb-Mountain
किंमेयुद्धेनकिंप्राणैर्युद्धकार्यं न विद्यते ।यत्रायंनिहतश्शेतेरणमूर्धनिलक्ष्मणः ।।।।
kiṃ me yuddhena kiṃ prāṇair yuddhakāryaṃ na vidyate | yatrāyaṃ nihataḥ śete raṇamūrdhani lakṣmaṇaḥ ||
Was nützt mir der Kampf, was nützt mir das Leben? Es gibt keinen Sinn zu streiten, wenn Lakshmana, getroffen, an der Spitze der Schlacht darniederliegt.
'What purpose is there to fight in battle or in life with Lakshmana lying in the forefront struck in the battlefield?'
FAQs
The verse dramatizes a dharmic crisis: Rama’s sense of duty is inseparable from the lives and sacrifices of the righteous; he refuses to treat war as an abstract achievement.
Rama, seeing Lakṣmaṇa down at the battlefront, voices despair and loss of purpose.
Deep relational responsibility—Rama’s life-purpose is tied to protecting those who uphold dharma.