Shloka 2.43.7
कौशल्याविलापः — Kausalya’s Lament and the Vision of Rama’s Return
वने त्वदृष्टदुःखानां केकय्यानुमते त्वया।त्यक्तानां वनवासाय कान्ववस्था भविष्यति।।।।
vane tvadṛṣṭaduḥkhānāṃ kaikayyānumate tvayā | tyaktānāṃ vanavāsāya kā nv avasthā bhaviṣyati ||
At Kaikeyī’s behest, and with your consent, you have cast them away to live in the forest—those who have never before known suffering. What condition will they be reduced to there?
You have banished them as per the desire of Kaikeyi. What will be their plight in the forest, for they have never experienced any hardship earlier!
The verse challenges the righteousness of abandoning the innocent to hardship for the sake of a boon’s demand, highlighting a dharmic concern for compassion and protection of dependents.
Kausalyā laments to Daśaratha after Rāma’s exile has been ordered under Kaikeyī’s influence, fearing the suffering awaiting Rāma and his companions in the forest.
Kausalyā’s maternal compassion and moral clarity—she measures royal action against humane duty.