Shloka 2.12.114
द्वादशः सर्गः — Kaikeyi’s Boons and Dasaratha’s Moral Collapse (Ayodhya Kanda 12)
स भूमिपालो विलपन्ननाथवत्स्त्रिया गृहीतो हृदयेऽतिमात्रया।पपात देव्याश्चरणौ प्रसारितावुभावसम्स्पृश्य यथाऽतुरस्तथा।।।।
sa bhūmipālo vilapann anāthavat striyā gṛhīto hṛdaye ’timātrayā |
papāta devyāś caraṇau prasāritāv ubhāv asaṃspṛśya yathā ’turas tathā ||
That king, wailing like one without refuge—his heart held fast beyond measure by a woman—fell down; for the queen drew back and spread apart both her feet, and he collapsed like a sick man, unable to touch them.
The king, with his heart in the grip of a woman, wailing like an orphan tried to reach her feet, exceeding the limit of selfrespect but, unable to touch them as she pulledthem apart, he collapsed like a sick man.इत्यार्षे श्रीमद्रामायणे वाल्मीकीय आदिकाव्ये अयोध्याकाण्डे द्वादशस्सर्गः।।Thus ends the twelfth sarga of Ayodhyakanda of the holy Ramayana, the first epic composed by sage Valmiki.
It illustrates the human cost when dharma in the household collapses: power without compassion degrades dignity, and adharma turns a king into one ‘without refuge’ even in his own palace.
The narration describes Daśaratha physically falling while trying to touch Kaikeyī’s feet; she withdraws them, and he collapses in distress.
The scene emphasizes the erosion of royal self-command under grief; it implicitly contrasts dignity (maryādā) with desperation when dharma is threatened.