Shloka 6.114.35
रावणस्य अन्त्येष्टिः — Ravana’s Funeral Rites and the Ethics of Post-War Conduct
हाराजन् सुकुमारंतेसुभ्रुसुत्वक्समुन्नसम् ।।6.114.34।।कान्तिश्रीद्युतिभिस्तुल्यमिन्दुपद्मदिवाकरैः ।किरीटकूटोज्ज्वलितंताम्रास्यंदीप्तकुण्डलम् ।।6.114.35।।मदव्याकुललोलाक्षंभूत्वायत्पानभूमिषु ।विविधस्रग्धरंचारुवल्गुस्मितकथंशुभम् ।।6.114.36।।तदेवाद्यतवैवंहिवक्त्रं न भ्राजतेप्रभो ।रामसायकनिर्भिन्नंरक्तंरुधिरविस्रवैः ।।6.114.37।।वीशीर्णमेदोमस्तिष्कंरूक्षस्यन्दनरेणुभिः ।
kāntiśrīdyutibhis tulyam indupadmadivākaraiḥ |
kirīṭakūṭojjvalitaṃ tāmrāsyaṃ dīptakuṇḍalam ||6.114.35||
O king, your face—once comparable in beauty, splendor, and radiance to the moon, the lotus, and the sun—shone with a blazing crown, coppery lips, and glowing earrings.
"Oh King, My Lord! Your shiny eyes with delicate eyebrows, which used to be shiny and delicate your prominent nose brilliant skin resembling moon in pleasantness, lotus in beauty, and Sun in radiance your illuminating crown, your shining crown with gems like the peaks of mountains your coppery lips, glowing earrings, rolling eyes were pleasing earlier in the drinking parlours through inebriety, and your auspicious mouth having been indulged in pleasing talk. Today you are pierced by Rama's arrow and shattered with blood flowing, marrow of brain scattered, soiled by dust, dirtied and without any shine."
By contrasting Ravana’s former splendor with his present downfall (developed in the surrounding verses), the passage underscores a dharmic moral: adharma and arrogance may appear powerful for a time, but they culminate in ruin when confronted by righteous action.
The speaker states an unvarnished truth about impermanence: beauty, power, and royal glory are transient. This truthful recognition frames the ethical lesson that only adherence to satya and dharma endures, not external magnificence.