Shloka 1.5.18
अयोध्यानगरवर्णनम् (Description of Ayodhya and the Ikshvaku Royal Setting)
दुन्दुभीभिर्मृदङ्गैश्च वीणाभि: पणवैस्तथा ।नादितां भृशमत्यर्थं पृथिव्यां तामनुत्तमाम् ।।।।
dundubhībhir mṛdaṅgaiś ca vīṇābhiḥ paṇavais tathā | nāditāṃ bhṛśam atyarthaṃ pṛthivyāṃ tām anuttamām ||
It resounded loudly and exceedingly with dundubhī kettledrums, mṛdaṅgas, vīṇās, and paṇavas; upon the earth, that city was unsurpassed.
The city echoed with the sounds of trumpets, mrudangas, vinas and panavas. There was no city on earth superior to Ayodhya.
A dharmic society supports auspicious arts and public celebration; cultural refinement is portrayed as a sign of ordered and ethical communal life.
The narrator highlights Ayodhyā’s vibrant soundscape and declares its unmatched excellence among earthly cities.
Civic virtue: collective joy and refinement sustained under stable rule.