Shloka 2
अरण्यकपर्व — मार्कण्डेयकथिते रामविजयः, सीताशुद्धिः, अयोध्याप्रत्यागमनवर्णनम्
Rāma’s victory, Sītā’s vindication, and return to Ayodhyā as told by Mārkaṇḍeya
आश्रमाद् राक्षसेन्द्रेण रावणेन दुरात्मना । मायामास्थाय तरसा हत्वा गृध्रं जटायुषम्,मार्कण्डेयजीने कहा--भरतश्रेष्ठ! श्रीरामचन्द्रजीको भी वनवास तथा स्त्रीवियोगका अनुपम दु:ख सहन करना पड़ा था। दुरात्मा राक्षसराज महाबली रावण अपना मायाजाल बिछाकर आश्रमसे उनकी पत्नी सीताको वेगपूर्वक हर ले गया था और अपने कार्यमें बाधा डालनेवाले गृध्रराज जटायुको उसने वहीं मार गिराया था
āśramād rākṣasendreṇa rāvaṇena durātmanā | māyām āsthāya tarasā hatvā gṛdhraṃ jaṭāyuṣam ||
Mārkaṇḍeya said: “O best of the Bharatas, the wicked Rāvaṇa, lord of the Rākṣasas, resorting to deception, swiftly carried Sītā away from the hermitage; and after killing the vulture Jaṭāyus—who tried to obstruct his deed—he departed.”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts adharma—abduction through deceit and violence—with dharma, shown by Jaṭāyus risking his life to oppose wrongdoing; it highlights that righteous resistance may demand sacrifice, and that evil often advances by māyā (fraud) rather than open virtue.
Mārkaṇḍeya recounts the Ramāyaṇa episode: Rāvaṇa uses deception to seize Sītā from the hermitage, and when Jaṭāyus tries to stop him, Rāvaṇa kills him and continues his flight.