Shloka 17
सीताप्रत्याख्यानम् / Rama’s Post-Victory Address to Sītā
Public Opinion and Royal Duty
प्राप्तचारित्रसन्देहाममप्रतिमुखेस्थिता ।दीपोनेत्रातुरस्येवप्रतिकूलासिमेदृढम् ।।6.118.17।।
prāpta-cāritra-sandehā mama pratimukhe sthitā |
dīpo netrāturasyeva pratikūlāsi me dṛḍham ||6.118.17||
Da nun Zweifel an deiner Keuschheit aufgekommen ist und du vor mir stehst, bist du mir wie eine helle Lampe für den, dessen Augen krank sind: schmerzend und wahrlich unerträglich.
"In the event of doubtful conduct also you are standing firmly like a glowing lamp for me suffering from sore eyes and disagreeable to me."
FAQs
It foregrounds the tension between truth and social suspicion: even a symbol of light can cause pain when the moral ‘eyes’ of society (or the king) are afflicted by doubt.
Rāma expresses discomfort at receiving Sītā publicly when her character is suspected due to her captivity.
Severe impartiality (as Rāma claims it): he speaks as one bound to standards of public judgment rather than private emotion.