Shloka 2.47.6

अयोध्यायाः पौरविलापः (Lament of the Citizens of Ayodhya on Rama’s Absence)

Devanagari script

यो नः सदा पालयति पिता पुत्रानिवौरसान्।कथं रघूणां स श्रेष्ठस्त्यक्त्वा नो विपिनं गतः।।।।

Transliteration

santi śuṣkāṇi kāṣṭhāni prabhūtāni mahānti ca | taiḥ prajvālya citāṃ sarve praviśāmo ’tha pāvakam ||

Translation

There are many great, dry logs here; with them we shall kindle a funeral pyre, and then all of us will enter the fire.

Context

How could he, the best among the kings of Raghu dynasty, who used to protect us as a father protects his own children, go to the forest, abandoning us?

Characters & Entities

• Fire (pāvaka)
• Pyre (citā)
• Rāma (implied cause of despair)

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

As a dharma-lesson, it shows grief can overwhelm discernment; ethical steadiness requires restraint even amid loss.

What is the narrative situation?

Citizens, driven to desperation by separation from Rāma, speak of building a pyre and ending their lives.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Indirectly, Rāma’s worth to the community is emphasized—his absence triggers extreme, uncontrolled sorrow.