Shloka 2.43.21
कौशल्याविलापः — Kausalya’s Lament and the Vision of Rama’s Return
अयं हि मां दीपयते समुत्थितःतनूजशोकप्रभवो हुताशनः।महीमिमां रश्मिभिरुद्धतप्रभःयथा निदाघे भगवान् दिवाकरः।।।।
nissaṃśayaṃ mayā manye purā vīra kadaryayā |
pātukāmeṣu vatseṣu mātṝṇāṃ śātitā stanāḥ ||
Undoubtedly, O valiant one, I think that in some former time—out of miserly cruelty—I hacked the udders of the mothers while their calves longed to drink; therefore this suffering has come to me.
I am consumed by this blazing fire of grief caused by separation from my son like the earth scorched in summer by the Sun-god with his oppressive raysityārṣē śrīmadrāmāyaṇē vālmīkīya ādikāvyē ayōdhyākāṇḍē tricatvāriṅśassargaḥ৷৷Thus ends the fortythird sarga of Ayodhyakanda of the holy Ramayana, the first epic composed by sage Valmiki.
Ahiṃsā and compassion are central to dharma; cruelty to vulnerable beings is portrayed as generating painful consequences. The verse teaches moral causality (karma) and the need for empathy.
Kausalya, overwhelmed by separation from Rama, interprets her present anguish through the lens of past wrongdoing and karmic retribution.
Moral introspection and accountability: Kausalya does not merely blame others; she searches her own actions (even across time) for ethical causes.