Valmiki Ramayana 2.61.20-21: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 61, Shlokas 20-21
कौसल्याविलापः · Kausalya’s Lament and Ethical Analogies on Kingship
Spoken by Lakshmana to DasharathaSetting: CitrakūṭaBharata’s embassy at its emotional peak—assurance of non-violence and dharma
त्वां तु नोत्सहते हन्तुं महात्मा पितृगौरवात् ।
ससोमार्कग्रहगणं नभस्ताराविचित्रितम् ॥२०॥
पातयेद्योदिवं क्रुद्धस्सत्वां न व्यतिवर्तते ।
प्रक्षोभयेद्वारये द्वा महीं शैलशताचिताम् ॥२१॥
tvāṃ tu notsahate hantuṃ mahātmā pitṛgauravāt |
sasomārkagrahagaṇaṃ nabhas tārāvicitritam ||20||
pātayed yo divaṃ kruddhaḥ sa tvāṃ na vyativartate |
prakṣobhayet vā dārayet vā mahīṃ śailaśatācitām ||21||
पर राम तुम्हे मार नहीं सकता। उसका अपने बाप के लिए बहुत इज़्ज़त है। वो इतना बड़ा है कि गुस्से में आसमान को भी गिरा सकता है, सूरज चाँद सब उतर आएँ। पर वो अपने बाप की बात नहीं तोड़ सकता। वो ज़मीन को हिला सकता है, पर बाप के आगे सर झुका के छोड़ देता है।
Sandhi Notes
- नोत्सहते = न + उत्सहते
- पातयेद्यो = पातयेत् + यः
- क्रुद्धस्स = क्रुद्धः + सः
- ससोमार्कग्रहगणम् = स + सोम + अर्क + ग्रह + गणम्
- नभस्ताराविचित्रितम् = नभः + तारा-विचित्रितम्
- दारयेद्वा = दारयेत् + वा
Out of respect for his father magnanimous Rama is not inclined to kill you. He has not defied the anger, the Sun, the Moon and the sky looking wonderful with stars can be pulled down. He will not even shake or break the earth surrounded by hundreds of mountains.
The teaching
Even limitless power must bow to dharma; honoring one’s father’s word is higher than cosmic might.
Duties in tension
- Kṣatriya capacity to punish perceived wrongdoing
- Fraternal non-violence and political stability
- Supreme duty of honoring father (pitṛgौरव/pitṛ-vākya)
- Ethical theme
- Pitṛ-dharma and ahiṃsā within kṣatriya-dharma
- How it resolves
- Filial duty overrides retaliatory impulse; restraint as dharma
Devotion and practice
Bhakti through contemplation of Rāma’s maryādā and self-restraint; supports vows, obedience to righteous elders, and anger-transformation.
- Deity praised
- Rāma (as dharma-mūrti)
- Form of praise
- Vandana (salutation)
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism), with Shanta (peace)
- Mood
- Majestic, self-restrained, filial
Themes
- Dharma
- Satya
- Pitṛbhakti
- Maryada
- Ethics
- Self-restraint
Mastery: the one who could overturn the cosmos still chooses dharma—echoing the ideal of jñānī/mahātmā whose will is aligned with ṛta, not ego.
Cosmic imagery recalls Upaniṣadic macrocosm-microcosm mapping; restraint suggests the 'inner ruler' (antaryāmin) principle—true sovereignty is self-rule.
Evoked cosmic scale: sun, moon, planets, starry sky; earth with hundreds of mountains (hyperbolic)
- Rama and Bharata
- Non-violence toward brother grounded in father-reverence (protective)
- Rama and Dasharatha
- Pitṛgौरव—filial reverence governing action (reverent)
- Rama and Bhudevi
- Ability to shake/rend earth rather than violate dharma (awe)
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa Ayodhyākāṇḍa: repeated emphasis on pitṛ-vacana as supreme (Rāma’s guiding principle); Rāmacaritamānasa Ayodhyākāṇḍa: Rāma’s unwavering adherence to father’s word
Vedic cosmology lists (sun, moon, grahas, stars) used to magnify vow/tejas
Bālakāṇḍa: Rāma’s cosmic-scale prowess; Ayodhyākāṇḍa: refusal to break dharma despite provocation
Anuṣṭup (śloka)
Solemn
Deep, expansive intonation; elongated svara on cosmic enumerations (soma-arka-graha-gaṇam...) with calm cadence on 'na vyativartate'
FAQs
Filial reverence and obedience to rightful authority are central to dharma; true strength is shown by restraint in deference to moral duty.
The speaker stresses that Rāma’s non-violence toward his father is not weakness but principled restraint grounded in respect for paternal dharma.
Rāma’s pitṛbhakti (reverence for his father) and self-control, even while possessing world-shaking power.
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