Shloka 2.58.33

अष्टपञ्चाशः सर्गः (Sarga 58) — Daśaratha Questions Sumantra; Messages from the Forest Threshold

Devanagari script

सर्वप्रजाभिरामं हि रामं प्रव्राज्य धार्मिकम्।सर्वलोकं विरुध्येमं कथं राजा भविष्यसि।।।।

Transliteration

duḥkhasyānucito duḥkhaṃ sumantra śayanocitaḥ |

bhūmipālātmajo bhūmau śete katham anāthavat ||

Translation

“O Sumantra, he is unfit for suffering and used to a proper bed. How can the son of the earth’s guardian lie upon the bare ground like one without protection?”

Context

'Having banished the righteous Rama, the delight of all subjects and, thereby,antagonizing the entire world, how can you claim to be their king?'

Characters & Entities

• Dasharatha
• Sumantra
• Rama

FAQs

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

The verse highlights the tension between royal comfort and dharmic renunciation: dharma may demand that even a prince accept austerity.

What is the narrative situation?

Dasharatha laments the thought of Rama sleeping on the ground in the forest, far from palace protections.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Dasharatha’s protective parental love; and implicitly, Rama’s capacity to endure hardship for truth.