Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 114, Shloka 5
अयोध्याप्रवेशः
Bharata Enters Ayodhya and Perceives the City’s Desolation
विधूमामिव हेमाभामध्वराग्ने स्समुत्थिताम्। हविरभ्युक्षितां पश्चाच्छिखां विप्रलयं गताम्।।2.114.5।।
vidhūmām iva hemābhām adhvarāgneḥ samutthitām | havirabhyukṣitāṃ paścāc chikhāṃ vipralayaṃ gatām || 2.114.5 ||
Ayodhyā semblait une flamme sacrificielle : sans fumée, d’un éclat d’or lorsqu’elle s’élève du feu du rite ; puis, aspergée des oblations, elle retombait et s’éteignait.
FAQs
The verse implies that when dharma’s living presence (Rāma) is removed, even a prosperous order can lose its radiance—like a flame that rises pure yet later fades. Dharma is not mere ritual form; it is sustained by righteous leadership and inner integrity.
The poet describes Ayodhyā’s condition after Rāma’s departure, using sacrificial imagery to convey a city whose former brilliance has diminished into silence and loss.
Indirectly, Rāma’s dhārmic presence is emphasized: his righteousness is portrayed as the sustaining ‘fire’ of the kingdom’s welfare and moral order.