Shloka 2.48.5

अयोध्यायाः शोकवर्णनम् (Ayodhya’s Lament and Civic Desolation)

Devanagari script

नष्टं दृष्ट्वा नाभ्यनन्दन् विपुलं वा धनागमम्।पुत्रं प्रथमजं लब्ध्वा जननी नाभ्यनन्दत।।2.48.5।।

Transliteration

naṣṭaṃ dṛṣṭvā nābhyanandan vipulaṃ vā dhanāgamam |

putraṃ prathamajaṃ labdhvā jananī nābhyanandata ||2.48.5||

Translation

Seeing loss, they did not grieve; gaining great wealth, they did not rejoice. Even a mother, obtaining her first-born son, felt no happiness.

Context

Neither loss nor acquisition of wealth mattered (to the people). No mother rejoiced over getting her first-born son.

Characters & Entities

• jananī (mother)
• prathamaja putra (first-born son)

FAQs

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

The verse places dharma above artha (wealth) and even private milestones: when righteousness is violated in the polity, ordinary gains and losses lose meaning.

What is the narrative situation?

The people of Ayodhyā are so consumed by sorrow at Rāma’s exile that neither economic change nor family joy can move them.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Rāma’s moral authority is emphasized by contrast: his removal makes the city’s usual measures of happiness—wealth and progeny—feel empty.