Valmiki Ramayana 2.33.23 — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 33, Shloka 23
त्रयस्त्रिंशः सर्गः
Civic Lament and Rama’s Dutiful Approach to Daśaratha
बिलानि दंष्ट्रिण स्सर्वे सानूनि मृगपक्षिणः।त्यजन्त्वस्मद्भयाद्भीता गजास्सिंहा वनानि च।।।।अस्मत्त्यक्तं प्रपद्यन्तां सेव्यमानं त्यजन्तु च।
bilāni daṃṣṭriṇaḥ sarve sānūni mṛga-pakṣiṇaḥ |
tyajantu asmad-bhayād bhītā gajāḥ siṃhā vanāni ca ||
asmat-tyaktaṃ prapadyantāṃ sevyamānaṃ tyajantu ca |
Que todas las fieras de colmillos abandonen sus guaridas, y que aves y bestias dejen las laderas de los montes; que elefantes y leones, temblando por el temor de nuestra presencia, salgan de sus bosques. Entonces, que entren en lo que nosotros hayamos dejado y desocupen los lugares que ahora habitamos.
Let Kaikeyi take possession of our deserted and dilapidated homes with ruined courtyards which seem as though struck by calamities. They are drained of wealth and foodgrains, covered with dust and abandoned by the gods. There is no water or smoke (from kitchen). They are infested with rats. They stand unswept. There foodgrains lie around ratholes, and broken earthenwares lie scattered. There are no offerings, no sacrifices, no recitation of sacred hymns, no libations and no invocations.
FAQs
The verse uses reversal imagery to express moral protest: when dharma is displaced, the natural and social orders seem to exchange places.
Citizens poetically imagine wildlife taking over the emptied city as they move into the forest with Rāma.
Collective courage and resolve—people are willing to face the wilderness for the sake of dharma and loyalty.
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