Valmiki Ramayana 2.30.37: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 30, Shloka 37

सीताया वनानुगमननिश्चयः · Sita’s Resolve to Accompany Rama to the Forest

Spoken by Rama to SitaSetting: Ayodhyā (implied)Places named: देवलोक, गन्धर्वलोक, गोलोक, ब्रह्मलोक

Devanagari script

देवगन्धर्वगोलोकान्ब्रह्मलोकां स्तथाऽपरान् ।

प्राप्नुवन्ति महात्मानो मातापितृपरायणाः ॥३७॥

Recitation with translationValmiki Ramayana 2.30.37

Transliteration

deva-gandharva-go-lokān brahma-lokāṃs tathāparān |

prāpnuvanti mahātmāno mātā-pitṛ-parāyaṇāḥ ||37||

Translation

जो लोग माँ बाप के काम में लगे रहते हैं, वो बड़े लोग होते हैं। वो देव लोक, गंधर्व लोक, ब्रह्मा लोक जैसे ऊँचे स्थान पा जाते हैं। और भी बहुत कुछ मिलता है।

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Word by Word

• deva-gandharva-go-lokān: worlds of gods, gandharvas, and cows (go-worlds)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + gandharva (प्रातिपदिक) + go (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural (बहुवचन); समासः: इतरेतर-द्वन्द्व (deva-gandharva-go) + तत्पुरुष (…-loka = 'worlds of …')
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Compound: Dvandva

• brahma-lokān: worlds of Brahmā
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural (बहुवचन); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: brahmaṇaḥ lokaḥ
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Compound: Tatpurusha

• tathā: and also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (तथाशब्दः = 'likewise/also')
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)

• aparān: other (worlds)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: apara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural (बहुवचन); adjective qualifying 'lokān' (understood)
• Role: Karma (कर्म)

• prāpnuvanti: attain, reach
• Type: Verb
• Root: √āp (आप्) with pra-
• Form: Present tense (लट्), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Plural (बहुवचन)
• Role: Kriya (क्रिया)

• mahātmānaḥ: great men
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā-ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); karmadhāraya: 'great-souled'
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Compound: Karmadharaya

• mātā-pitṛ-parāyaṇāḥ: devoted to mother and father
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mātṛ (प्रातिपदिक) + pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक) + parāyaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); समासः: द्वन्द्व (mātā-pitṛ) + तत्पुरुष (…-parāyaṇa = 'devoted to …'); adjective qualifying 'mahātmānaḥ'
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Compound: Tatpurusha

Sandhi Notes

• devagandharvagolokān→deva-gandharva-go-lokān
• brahmalokāṃs-tathā'parān→brahma-lokān tathā aparān.

Context

Great men who are devoted to the service of their parents attain the world of the gods, of gandharvas, of cows, of Visnu, of Brahma and other worlds.

The teaching

Single-pointed devotion to mother and father elevates one to exalted destinies and higher realms.

Ethical theme

Filial devotion as puṇya-yielding dharma

For your practice

Encourages pitṛ-mātṛ-upāsanā as a daily practice (service, gratitude, care) with both ethical and spiritual fruits.

Mood and themes

Rasa

Adbhuta (wonder), with Shanta (peace)

Mood

Exalting, cosmic, aspirational

Themes

• Dharma
• Ethics
• Filial devotion
• Karma-phala
• Itihasa

Symbolism

Relationships

Cross references

Meter and recitation

Characters & Entities

• Rama
• Sita
• devas
• gandharvas
• mother
• father

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

Devotion to parents is elevated as a direct dharmic cause for higher spiritual attainments, linking family duty with cosmic reward.

What is the narrative situation?

Rama continues to justify obedience to parental command, showing that serving parents is not merely social duty but spiritually consequential.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Reverence and gratitude: the virtue of seeing parents as worthy of the highest devotion.