Valmiki Ramayana 2.2.45: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 2, Shloka 45
यौवराज्य-प्रस्तावः
Proposal for Rāma’s Installation as Heir-Apparent
Addressed to King DaśarathaSetting: Ayodhyā
नास्य क्रोधः प्रसादश्च निरर्थोऽस्ति कदाचन ॥४५॥
हन्त्येव नियमाद्वध्यानवध्ये न च कुप्यति ।
nāsya krodhaḥ prasādaś ca nirartho 'sti kadācana ||45||
hanty eva niyamād vadhyān avadhye na ca kupyati |
उसका गुस्सा या खुशी सब काम की होती है, कभी फालतू नहीं। जो गलत है उस्से वो सज़ा देता है, लेकिन जो मानने लायक है उस्से कभी नाराज़ नहीं होता।
Sandhi Notes
- nāsya → na asya
- prasādaśca → prasādaḥ ca
- nirartho’sti → nirarthaḥ asti
- hanty eva → hanti eva
- vadhyān avadhye (anusvāra/visarga sandhi in transmission)
His anger or favour never goes in vain. He kills those who rightly deserve to be killed and flares not at those whose life is to be spared.
The teaching
Authority is righteous when emotions serve justice: punish the punishable by rule, and never let anger touch the blameless.
- Ethical theme
- Rājadharma / nyāya / daṇḍanīti
Devotion and practice
Cultivates ethical discernment: act firmly without personal spite; useful contemplation for judges, leaders, parents, teachers.
- Deity praised
- Rāma (as dharma-rāja ideal)
- Form of praise
- Stuti (a hymn of praise)
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism), with Shanta (peace)
- Mood
- Just, controlled, unyielding
Themes
- Dharma
- Rajadharma
- Ethics
- Justice
- Maryada
Rāga-dveṣa transcendence in action: emotions subordinated to dharma, not ego; karma performed with clarity.
Ideal of the sthita-prajña-like steadiness (emotion not ‘nirartha’) applied to kingship.
Mahābhārata Śānti Parva (daṇḍa as protector of dharma; punishment must be proportionate); Manusmṛti 7 (king’s duty of punishment and protection)
Dharmaśāstra daṇḍanīti tradition
Rāma’s later conduct as impartial judge/warrior (e.g., punishment of wrongdoers while protecting the innocent across the epic)
Anuṣṭup (Śloka)
Commanding
Firm cadence; stress on "नियमाद्" and "न च कुप्यति"
FAQs
Impartial justice: punishment and mercy must be governed by niyama (lawful principle), not personal impulse.
Ministers portray Rāma as a ruler whose emotional responses are disciplined and aligned with justice.
Fair-minded restraint: controlled anger, meaningful grace, and principled punishment.
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