Shloka 5.12.22
द्वादशः सर्गः — हनूमतः अन्तःपुरविचयः (Hanuman’s Search Through Ravana’s Inner Apartments)
प्रमथ्य राक्षसेन्द्रेण नागकन्या बलाद्धृताः।दृष्टा हनुमता तत्र न सा जनकनन्दिनी।।।।
pramathya rākṣasendreṇa nāgakanyā balāddhṛtāḥ |
dṛṣṭā hanumatā tatra na sā janakanandinī ||
There Hanumān saw Nāga maidens carried off by force by the lord of rākṣasas after overpowering them; but she—Janaka’s beloved daughter—was not there.
Hanuman saw the daghters of nagas kidnapped by Ravana forcibly after victory in war but not Sita, the delight of Janaka.
A contrast of dharma and adharma: forced abduction is condemned implicitly, sharpening the moral stakes of rescuing Sītā.
Hanumān observes women held captive by Rāvaṇa’s violence, yet still cannot identify Sītā among them.
Moral clarity—he recognizes coercion and captivity as wrong and remains intent on freeing the truly wronged.