Shloka 4.24.9
वालिवधोत्तरशोकः — Sugriva’s Remorse and Tara’s Lament after Vali’s Death
भ्राता कथं नाम महागुणस्यभ्रातुर्वधं राघव रोचयेत।राज्यस्य दुःखस्य च वीर सारंविचिन्तयन्कामपुरस्कृतऽस्सन्।।
bhrātā kathaṃ nāma mahā-guṇasya bhrātur vadhaṃ rāghava rocayet |
rājyasya duḥkhasya ca vīra sāraṃ vicintayan kāma-puraskṛtaḥ san ||
O Rāghava, O hero—how could a brother ever consent to the killing of a virtuous elder brother, when he reflects on the true substance of kingship and of sorrow? Yet I, driven foremost by desire, failed to reflect so.
'O Rama! prompted by passion, without thinking of the difference between obtaining the kingdom to satisfy one's desire and the consequent grief, which brother would be willing to kill his virtuous elder brother?
Dharma demands that desire (kāma) be subordinated to moral reflection: political gain and personal craving cannot justify fratricidal harm.
Sugrīva speaks to Rāma after Vāli’s death, recognizing that his earlier desire for the kingdom blinded him to the grief that would follow.
Moral awakening: Sugrīva begins to distinguish true welfare from impulsive ambition.