Shloka 3.52.17
सीताहरण-विलापः / The Lament at Jatāyu and the Abduction of Sītā
तस्याः कौशेयमुद्धूतमाकाशे कनकप्रभम्।बभौ चादित्यरागेण ताम्रमभ्रमिवातपे।।।।
tasyāḥ kauśeyam uddhūtam ākāśe kanakaprabham |
babhau cādityarāgeṇa tāmram abhram ivātape ||
Her silk, blown aloft in the sky and glowing like gold, appeared—tinted by the sun’s redness—like a copper-hued cloud in the light.
As the golden-coloured garment worn by Sita blew in the wind, it looked like a copper-coloured cloud illumined by the evening Sun in the sky.
Though not overtly moralizing, the verse supports a dharmic reading: Sītā’s purity is aesthetically foregrounded, implying that dharma possesses an enduring radiance even during injustice.
During the aerial abduction, Sītā’s garment billows and is compared to a sun-reddened cloud.
Sītā’s auspicious presence—suggested through luminous imagery rather than direct praise.