Shloka 3.50.17
जटायुरुपदेशः — Jatāyu Confronts Rāvaṇa (Ethical Admonition and Challenge)
स भारस्सौम्य भर्तव्यो यो नरं नावसादयेत्।।।।तदन्नमपि भोक्तव्यं जीर्यते यदनामयम्।
sa bhāraḥ saumya bhartavyo yo naraṃ nāvasādayet | tad annam api bhoktavyaṃ jīryate yad anāmayam ||
O gentle one, one should bear only that burden which does not exhaust a person; and one should eat only that food which is wholesome and digests without harm.
O gentle Ravana! one should carry that much of weight which does not tire him. One should eat only that wholesome food which can be easily digested.
Self-restraint is dharma: wise action is proportionate—one should not undertake what exceeds one’s rightful capacity and leads to ruin.
Jatāyu counsels Rāvaṇa with proverbial wisdom, implying that abducting Sītā is an unbearable ‘burden’ that will destroy him.
Measured judgment and moderation.