Shloka 2.20.41
अयोध्याकाण्डे विंशः सर्गः — Rama Enters Kauśalyā’s Antaḥpura; Ritual Preparations and the Shock of Exile
त्वयि सन्निहितेऽप्येवमहमासं निराकृता।किं पुनः प्रोषिते तात ध्रुवं मरणमेव मे।।।।
tvayi sannihite ’py evam aham āsaṃ nirākṛtā | kiṃ punaḥ proṣite tāta dhruvaṃ maraṇam eva me ||
Even when you are present, dear child, I have been treated as cast aside; what then when you are far away in exile? For me, death will surely follow.
O child! even when you are nearby I am neglected like this. What to say when you are banished. Death is certain to me.
The verse raises the dharmic tension between public duty and private care: the righteous path must also consider obligations toward parents, whose well-being is traditionally a strong component of dharma.
Kausalyā fears that Rāma’s departure will remove her last support and that she will not survive the separation.
Rāma’s filial centrality is implied—his mere presence is portrayed as life-sustaining for his mother.