Valmiki Ramayana 2.12.34: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 12, Shloka 34
द्वादशः सर्गः · Kaikeyi’s Boons and Dasaratha’s Moral Collapse
Ayodhya Kanda 12
मम वृद्धस्य कैकेयि गतान्तस्य तपस्विनः ।
दीनं लालप्यमानस्य कारुण्यं कर्तुमर्हसि ॥३४॥
mama vṛddhasya kaikeyi gatāntasya tapasvinaḥ |
dīnaṃ lālapyamānasya kāruṇyaṃ kartum arhasi ||34||
कैकेयी, मैं तो बूढ़ा हो गया, मरने के करीब आ गया। तपस्या की है, अब हाल खराब है। मेरी हालत देख के तुम्हे तरस खाना चाहिए।
O Kaikeyi, you should show mercy to this wretched, old man on the verge of death, wailing pitifully.
FAQs
Karūṇā (compassion) is invoked as dharma within family and kingship: mercy toward the suffering is a moral obligation.
Daśaratha, broken by grief, begs Kaikeyī to relent and to treat him mercifully.
The appeal is for Kaikeyī’s compassion; implicitly, Daśaratha’s vulnerability and dependence on dharmic mercy are highlighted.
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