Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 114, Shloka 28
अयोध्याप्रवेशः
Bharata Enters Ayodhya and Perceives the City’s Desolation
सह नूनं मम भ्रात्रा पुरस्यास्य द्युतिर्गता। न हि राजत्ययोध्येयं सासारेवार्जुनी क्षपा।।2.114.28।।
saha nūnaṁ mama bhrātrā purasyāsya dyutir gatā |
na hi rājaty ayodhyeyaṁ sāsārevārjunī kṣapā ||2.114.28||
Assurément, avec mon frère s’est retirée la splendeur de cette ville. Ayodhyā ne brille plus, telle une nuit lourde de pluie dans l’obscur déclin de la lune.
Certainly splendour has left along with my brother. Like the night when the rain pours down during the waning of the Moon, Ayodhya shines not.
FAQs
The verse implies that true royal splendour is dharmic, not decorative: a kingdom’s radiance depends on the presence of a righteous leader, not merely on wealth or ceremony.
Bharata compares Ayodhya’s gloom after Rama’s exile to a dark rainy night during the moon’s waning phase.
Bharata’s humility and devotion to Rama: he credits the city’s glory to Rama, not to power or pomp.