Valmiki Ramayana 2.39.4: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 39, Shloka 4
एकोनचत्वारिंशः सर्गः · Dasaratha’s Lament, Sumantra’s Commission, and Sita’s Vow of Marital Dharma
मन्ये खलु मया पूर्वं विवत्सा बहवःकृताः ।
प्राणिनो हिंसिता वापि तस्मादिदमुपस्थितम् ॥४॥
manye khalu mayā pūrvaṃ vivatsā bahavaḥ kṛtāḥ |
prāṇino hiṃsitā vāpi tasmād idam upasthitam ||4||
«Assurément, jadis j’ai dû rendre beaucoup d’êtres privés de leurs enfants, ou bien j’ai fait du tort à des créatures vivantes ; c’est pourquoi je pense que ce malheur s’est abattu sur moi.»
'In the past I must have separated many from their children or harmed many living beings. That is why I think this calamity has befallen me.
FAQs
Moral causality: suffering is contemplated as a consequence of past harm (hiṃsā) done to others, urging accountability and repentance rather than self-justification.
Daśaratha, devastated by the impending exile of Rāma, interprets his present calamity as the fruit of earlier wrongdoing.
Self-scrutiny and remorse—Daśaratha turns inward, acknowledging possible past violence and its ethical repercussions.
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