Shloka 19
न्यग्रोध
प्रवेश-निवारणम् (Preventing Indrajit’s Banyan-Tree Rite) / Indrajit Confronts Vibhishana
राक्षसेन्द्रसुतासाधोपारुष्यंत्यजगौरवात् ।कुलेयद्यप्यहंजातोरक्षसांक्रूरकर्मणाम् ।।6.87.19।।गुणोयःप्रथमोनृणंतन्मेशीलमराक्षसम् ।
rākṣasendrasuta asādho pāruṣyaṃ tyaja gauravāt | kule yady apy ahaṃ jāto rakṣasāṃ krūrakarmaṇām || 6.87.19 || guṇo yaḥ prathamo nṛṇāṃ tan me śīlam arākṣasam |
Ô fils pervers du roi des Rākṣasas, renonce à cette dureté par égard pour l’honneur. Bien que je sois né dans une lignée de Rākṣasas aux actes cruels, j’ai pris pour première vertu des hommes le dharma ; ainsi mon caractère n’est pas celui d’un Rākṣasa.
"Impious son of Rakshasa king! Though born in the Rakshasa clan I renounced cruel deeds and followed respectfully manliness as my primary quality. My nature is not like that of Rakshasas."
FAQs
Dharma is grounded in chosen virtue, not merely birth: one may be born into a cruel lineage yet commit to humane, righteous qualities as primary.
Vibhīṣaṇa answers Indrajit’s insult by explaining his moral divergence from rākṣasa cruelty despite shared family and clan.
Moral autonomy and reformation—Vibhīṣaṇa foregrounds the ‘foremost human virtue’ (a dharmic guṇa) as his defining trait.