Shloka 6

चन्द्रप्रकाशे लङ्कानिरीक्षणम्

Moonlit Survey of Lanka and the Unfound Sita

Devanagari script

विनष्टशीताम्बुतुषारपङ्को महाग्रहग्राहविनष्टपङ्कः।प्रकाशलक्ष्म्याश्रयनिर्मलाङ्क: रराज चन्द्रो भगवान् शशाङ्कः।।5.5.6।।

Transliteration

vinaṣṭa-śītāmbu-tuṣāra-paṅko mahā-graha-grāha-vinaṣṭa-paṅkaḥ | prakāśa-lakṣmyāśraya-nirmalāṅkaḥ rarāja candro bhagavān śaśāṅkaḥ || 5.5.6 ||

Translation

La Lune divine—Śaśāṅka—brilla d’un disque sans tache, ayant pour demeure sa propre splendeur, car la boue, pareille à la rosée glacée, avait été effacée par l’étreinte du grand luminaire (le Soleil).

Word by Word

• vinaṣṭa-śīta-ambu-tuṣāra-paṅkaḥ: whose frost-mud (dew/frost) is destroyed
• vinaṣṭa-śīta-ambu-tuṣāra-paṅkaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vinaṣṭa (कृदन्त) + śīta (प्रातिपदिक) + ambu (प्रातिपदिक) + tuṣāra (प्रातिपदिक) + paṅka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (determinative chain): ‘mud (paṅka) of cold-water frost, destroyed’; Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• mahā-graha-grāha-vinaṣṭa-paṅkaḥ: whose frost-mud is destroyed by the great planet (sun)
• mahā-graha-grāha-vinaṣṭa-paṅkaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + graha (प्रातिपदिक) + grāha (प्रातिपदिक) + vinaṣṭa (कृदन्त) + paṅka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa: ‘mud destroyed by the seizer (grāha) which is the great planet (mahā-graha = sun)’; Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• prakāśa-lakṣmy-āśraya-nirmala-aṅkaḥ: having a clean surface resting on radiant splendour
• prakāśa-lakṣmy-āśraya-nirmala-aṅkaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prakāśa (प्रातिपदिक) + lakṣmī (प्रातिपदिक) + āśraya (प्रातिपदिक) + nirmala (प्रातिपदिक) + aṅka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa: ‘spot/surface (aṅka) clean (nirmala) due to resting on splendour of light (prakāśa-lakṣmī-āśraya)’; Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• rarāja: shone
• rarāja: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: rāj (धातु)
• Form: Liṭ-lakāra (Perfect), Parasmaipada, Prathama-puruṣa, Ekavacana

• candraḥ: the moon
• candraḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: candra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• bhagavān: glorious/divine
• bhagavān: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhagavat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; matup-anta (मतुप्)

• śaśāṅkaḥ: the moon (hare-marked)
• śaśāṅkaḥ: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (कर्ता-समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śaśāṅka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

Context

With the Sun, the great planet (star), destroying the frost that forms the dew, the Moon with its stain shone with graceful radiance.

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

Purification and clarity: obscurations are removed and the ‘true disc’ shines. Ethically, satya and dharma require removing coverings—fear, deceit, and confusion—so that right perception can guide action.

What is the narrative situation?

The verse continues the moonrise tableau, emphasizing clarity and brightness, preparing the narrative mood for discernment in Hanumān’s search.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Inner clarity (nirmalatā): the moon’s spotless disc mirrors the ideal of a pure intention in dharmic service.