Shloka 3.32.16
अरण्यकाण्डे द्वात्रिंशः सर्गः — Śūrpaṇakhā’s Report to Rāvaṇa and the Panegyric of His Might
चन्द्रसूर्यौ महाभागावुत्तिष्ठन्तौ परन्तपौ।निवारयति बाहुभ्यां यश्शैलशिखरोपमः।।।।
candrasūryau mahābhāgāv uttiṣṭhantau parantapau |
nivārayati bāhubhyāṃ yaḥ śailaśikharopamaḥ ||
Mountain-peak-like in stature, a great hero who scorches his foes—so mighty that with his own arms he could hold back the rising Moon and Sun.
He was like the peak of a mountain. He could stop with his arms the great Moon and Sun from rising. He was a scorcher of enemies.
Extraordinary power is not itself Dharma; when power becomes a cause for pride and intimidation, it tends toward adharma. The verse frames might as awe-inspiring, but the broader episode warns that power without restraint and righteousness becomes destructive.
In Araṇya-kāṇḍa, after Rāma destroys Khara, Dūṣaṇa, Triśiras, and their forces, the narrative turns to Śūrpaṇakhā’s approach to Rāvaṇa; these verses describe Rāvaṇa’s formidable nature.
Not virtue but formidable prowess (bala/śaurya) is emphasized—presented as terrifying capability that, in the story’s moral arc, is misaligned with Dharma.