HomeRamayanaAyodhya KandaSarga 86Shloka 2.86.21
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Shloka 2.86.21

लक्ष्मणगुणवर्णनम् — Lakshmana’s Vigil and Guha’s Testimony

रम्यचत्वरसंस्थानां सुविभक्तमहापथाम्।हर्म्यप्रासादम्पन्नां सर्वरत्नविभूषिताम्।।2.86.19।।गजाश्वरथसंबाधां तूर्यनादविनादिताम्।सर्वकल्याणसंपूर्णां हृष्टपुष्टजनाकुलाम्।।2.86.20।।आरामोद्यानसंपूर्णां समाजोत्सवशालिनीम्।सुखिता विचरिष्यन्ति राजधानीं पितुर्मम।।2.86.21।।

ramyacatvarasaṃsthānāṃ suvibhaktamahāpathām |

harmyaprāsādasampannāṃ sarvaratnavibhūṣitām ||

gajāśvarathasaṃbādhāṃ tūryanādavināditām |

sarvakalyāṇasaṃpūrṇāṃ hṛṣṭapuṣṭajanākulām ||

ārāmodyānasaṃpūrṇāṃ samājotsavaśālinīm |

sukhitā vicariṣyanti rājadhānīṃ pitur mama ||

In my father’s capital—lovely with charming squares and crossroads, with great roads well laid out; rich in mansions and palaces adorned with every jewel; thronged with elephants, horses, and chariots; resounding with festive music; complete in every blessing; crowded with glad and thriving people; abundant in groves, gardens, and parks; radiant with assemblies and celebrations—people will move about in comfort and peace.

There in the capital of my father with its lovely crossroads and squares, welllaid highways, full of mansions and palaces encrusted with all kinds of precious stones, teeming with elephants, horses and chariots, resounding with trumpets, and with wellbeing everywhere, and plenty of pleasuregardens, and parks and community festivals, people sound in health would be moving about in great comfort.

A
Ayodhyā (implied by rājadhānīṃ pitur mama)
G
Guha’s father (pituḥ mama, as reference point)

The verse evokes rājadhrama/ideal civic order: a righteous realm is marked by safety, prosperity, public joy, and the well-being of ordinary people.

In the midst of exile and uncertainty, the speaker recalls the splendor and social harmony of the capital, imagining people living and moving about happily.

A value for public welfare and ordered society—measuring a kingdom’s greatness by the flourishing of its people.