Shloka 18

सीताया अग्निप्रवेशः

Sita’s Ordeal by Fire / Agni-Pariksha

Devanagari script

चितांमेकुरुसौमित्रेव्यवनस्यास्यभेषजम् ।मिध्यापवादोपहतानाहंजीवितुमुत्सहे ।।।।

Transliteration

citāṁ me kuru saumitre vyasanasya 'sya bheṣajam |

mithyāpavādopahatā nāhaṁ jīvitum utsahe ||

Translation

O Saumitri, bereite mir einen Scheiterhaufen, das einzige Heilmittel für dieses Unglück. Von falschen Anschuldigungen getroffen, wünsche ich nicht weiterzuleben.

Word by Word

• citām: funeral pyre
• citām: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: citā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular, Feminine

• me: for me
• me: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान/Recipient)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular; enclitic form

• kuru: make/prepare
• kuru: Kriyā (क्रिया/command)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: Imperative (लोट्), Parasmaipada, 2nd person, Singular

• saumitre: O Saumitra (Lakshmana)
• saumitre: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saumitra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Sambodhana (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular, Masculine

• vyasanasya: of this calamity/sorrow
• vyasanasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vyasana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular, Neuter

• asya: of this
• asya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular, Neuter/Masculine; demonstrative pronoun

• bheṣajam: remedy
• bheṣajam: Karma (कर्म/Object complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bheṣaja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular, Neuter; predicate object to citām

• mithyā-apavāda-upahatā: struck by false accusations
• mithyā-apavāda-upahatā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mithyā (अव्यय) + apavāda (प्रातिपदिक) + upahata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular; tatpuruṣa: mithyāyāḥ apavādena upahatā (instrumental sense)

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• jīvitum: to live
• jīvitum: Karma (कर्म/infinitival object)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jīv (धातु)
• Form: Infinitive (तुमुन्), ‘to live’

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: Negation particle (निषेध)

• utsahe: I am able/dare
• utsahe: Kriyā (क्रिया/finite verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ut√sah (धातु)
• Form: Present (लट्), Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद), 1st person (उत्तमपुरुष), Singular

Context

"Saumithri! Cure for this sorrow is only pyre. Arrange for pyre as I do not desire to live with false reproaches."

Characters & Entities

• Sītā
• Lakṣmaṇa

FAQs

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

Dharma as preservation of truth and honor: Sītā frames death (or ordeal) as preferable to living under falsehood, making satya the axis of moral choice.

What is the narrative situation?

Sītā instructs Lakṣmaṇa to prepare the pyre, initiating the sequence leading to the fire-ordeal.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Sītā’s uncompromising integrity: she refuses a life overshadowed by slander and seeks a definitive resolution.