Valmiki Ramayana 2.29.21: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 29, Shloka 21
सीताया वनगमननिश्चयः · Sita’s Resolve to Accompany Rama to the Forest
ययदि मां दुःखितामेवं वनं नेतुं न चेच्छसि ।
विषमग्निं जलं वाऽहमास्थास्ये मृत्युकारणात् ॥२१॥
yadi māṃ duḥkhitām evaṃ vanaṃ netuṃ na cecchasi |
viṣam agniṃ jalaṃ vā 'ham āsthāsye mṛtyu-kāraṇāt ||21||
अगर तुम मुझे इतना दुखी देखके भी जंगल नहीं ले जाओगे, तो मैं मर जाऊँगी। मैं ज़हर खा लूँगी, या आग में कूद जाऊँगी, या पानी में डूब जाऊँगी।
If you do not wish to take your wife in this time of distress to the forest I shall die by consuming poison or throwing myself into fire or drowning in water.
FAQs
It dramatizes the perceived inseparability of marital duty; however, ethically it also shows the tension between dharma and extreme emotional resolve, highlighting how dharmic ideals can be invoked under distress.
After repeated refusals, Sītā makes a drastic declaration to compel Rāma to accept her as a companion in exile.
Unyielding commitment (dṛḍha-niścaya), though expressed through a severe ultimatum born of grief and fear of separation.
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