Shloka 2.20.55
अयोध्याकाण्डे विंशः सर्गः — Rama Enters Kauśalyā’s Antaḥpura; Ritual Preparations and the Shock of Exile
भृशमसुखममर्षिता तदाबहु विललाप समीक्ष्य राघवम्।व्यसनमुपनिशम्य सा महत्सुतमिव बद्धमवेक्ष्य किन्नरी।।।।
bhṛśam asukham amarṣitā tadā bahu vilalāpa samīkṣya rāghavam |
vyasanam upaniśamya sā mahat sutam iva baddham avekṣya kinnarī ||
Then she—overwhelmed by intense misery and burning indignation—lamented at length on seeing Rāghava; having heard of the great calamity, she looked upon him like a kinnarī gazing at her grown son held bound in captivity.
Kausalya, filled with anger due to extreme sorrow reflected over her misfortune, and burst into harrowing tears, looking at Rama, like a kinnari looking at her grown-up son taken captive.ityārṣē śrīmadrāmāyaṇē vālmīkīya ādikāvyē ayōdhyākāṇḍē viṅśassargaḥ৷৷Thus ends the twentieth sarga of Ayodhyakanda of the the holy Ramayana, the first epic composed by sage Valmiki.
The verse frames grief within a dharmic world where suffering arises from adherence to vows and truth-bound decisions; it invites reflection on how dharma can demand painful restraint even from the innocent.
The narration describes Kausalya’s emotional collapse and extended lament upon realizing the magnitude of Rama’s impending separation and misfortune.
Kausalya’s depth of maternal attachment and emotional integrity, presented through a vivid simile of a mother confronting her child’s captivity.