Ramayana — Yuddha Kanda, Sarga 12, Shloka 14
युद्धकाण्डे द्वादशः सर्गः — रावणस्य परिषद्-सम्बोधनं कुम्भकर्णस्य नीत्युपदेशश्च
Ravana’s Council Address and Kumbhakarna’s Counsel
तनुमध्यापृथुश्रोणीशरदिन्दुनिभानना ।हेमबिम्बनिभासौम्यामायेवमयनिर्मिता ।।6.12.14।।
tanumadhyā pṛthuśroṇī śaradindunibhānanā |
hemabimbanibhā saumyā māyeva mayanirmitā ||6.12.14||
She was slender-waisted and broad-hipped, her face like the full moon of autumn; gentle, shining like a golden image—like an enchantment, as though fashioned by Māyā itself.
"Beholding her smooth red soles and evenly shaped pinkish nails of feet, love is kindled in me."
FAQs
By portraying beauty as ‘māyā-like,’ the passage implicitly warns that fascination can cloud discernment; dharma requires mastery over desire and clear moral judgment.
Rāvaṇa reflects on Sītā’s beauty, his mind moving toward obsession—setting up the ethical contrast between uncontrolled kāma and righteous restraint.
Negatively, the lack of self-restraint; by contrast, the Ramayana’s dharmic ideal is indriya-nigraha (control of the senses).
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