पितृमरणश्रवणं जलक्रिया च
Hearing of Daśaratha’s death and the libation rites at Mandākinī
निष्प्रधानामनेकाग्रां नरेन्द्रेण विनाकृताम्।निवृत्तवनवासोऽपि नायोध्यां गन्तु मुत्सहे।।।।
niṣpradhānām anekāgrāṃ narendreṇa vinākṛtām | nivṛttavanavāso 'pi nāyodhyāṃ gantuṃ utsahe || 2.102.11 ||
राजा के बिना पड़ी, प्रधान-रहित और अनेक प्रकार की चिंता में डूबी हुई उस अयोध्या में, वनवास पूरा हो जाने पर भी, मैं जाने का साहस नहीं करता।
Even after the completion of my exile I do not wish to return to Ayodhya which is directionless, bereft of its chief, the king.
A kingdom’s stability depends on rightful leadership; dharma includes concern for social order and the disorientation caused by loss of a righteous ruler.
Rama, grieving, expresses reluctance to return to Ayodhyā because it is now without Daśaratha.
Rama’s sense of responsibility and reverence for rightful authority—he feels the gravity of a realm bereft of its king.