HomeRamayanaSundara KandaSarga 39Shloka 5.39.25
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Shloka 5.39.25

अभिज्ञानमणि-प्रदानम् — The Signet Jewel as Proof and the Consolation of Sita

कथं नु खलु दुष्पारं तरिष्यन्ति महोदधिम्।तानि हर्यृक्षसैन्यानि तौ वा नरवरात्मजौ।।।।

kathaṃ nu khalu duṣpāraṃ tariṣyanti mahodadhim | tāni haryṛkṣasainyāni tau vā naravarātmajau ||

How indeed will those armies of Vānaras and bears cross the vast ocean so hard to ford—and how will those two princes, the sons of the best of men, do so?

"How can the army of vanaras and bears, for that matter, princes Rama and Lakshmana negotiate the ocean, which is difficult to cross?

S
Sītā
H
Hanumān
O
Ocean (Mahodadhi)
V
Vānaras
B
Bears (Ṛkṣas)
R
Rāma
L
Lakṣmaṇa

Dharma includes responsible planning: righteous goals must be matched with realistic means, otherwise truth and duty are endangered by impracticality.

Sītā asks how the rescue force can traverse the ocean separating the mainland from Laṅkā.

Sītā’s clear-sightedness—she respects Rāma’s purpose yet questions the practical path to fulfill it.