Shloka 5.19.22
सीताव्यथा-वर्णनम् / Sītā’s Distress and Rāvaṇa’s Attempt at Coercive Allurement
आयाचमानां दुःखार्तां प्राञ्जलिं देवतामिव।भावेन रघुमुख्यस्य दशग्रीवपराभवम्।।।।
asaṃvṛtāyām āsīnāṃ dharaṇyāṃ saṃśitavratām |
chinnāṃ prapatitāṃ bhūmau śākhām iva vanaspateḥ ||
She sat upon the bare ground, her vow and resolve sharpened by suffering—like a branch cut from a tree and fallen upon the earth.
Tormented with grief, Sita looked like a goddess begging Rama, the foremost of the Raghu family with folded hands in her mind to destroy Ravana, the ten-necked demon.
Dharma is shown as fidelity to one’s vow even when externally “cut off” from support; righteousness can persist as inner resolve, not merely social circumstance.
Sītā is depicted in stark deprivation—seated on bare earth—before Rāvaṇa’s persuasion and threats intensify.
Dṛḍhatā (firmness) in vrata—unyielding commitment to Rāma and to moral integrity.