Valmiki Ramayana 2.78.24: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 78, Shloka 24
अष्टसप्ततितमः सर्गः · Śatrughna’s Fury and Bharata’s Restraint
Mantharā Episode
Setting: Ayodhyā (palace area where Mantharā is confronted)
भरतस्य वचश्श्रुत्वा शत्रुघ्नो लक्ष्मणानुजः ।
न्यवर्तत ततो रोषात्तां मुमोच च मन्थराम् ॥२४॥
bharatasya vacaḥ śrutvā śatrughno lakṣmaṇānujaḥ |
nyavartata tato roṣāt tāṁ mumoca ca mantharām ||24||
शत्रुघ्न, लक्ष्मण का छोटा भाई, भरत की बात सुन के शांत हो गया। उसने अपना गुस्सा रोक लिया। और मंथरा को छोड़ दिया।
Sandhi Notes
- वचश्श्रुत्वा → वचः + श्रुत्वा
- रोषात्ताम् → रोषात् + ताम्।
Hearing the words of Bharata, Satrughna, the younger brother of Lakshmana restrained his fury and also released Manthara.
The teaching
Hearing wise words can turn wrath into self-mastery; true strength is restraint.
Duties in tension
- Punishing perceived adharma (Mantharā’s role)
- Obedience to elder brother’s counsel
- Upholding dharma through non-lethal restraint
- Ethical theme
- Self-control / obedience / non-violence
- How it resolves
- Restraint and release after hearing counsel
For your practice
Model for kṣānti and dama: pause, listen, release; applicable as daily vow of non-harm.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace), with Raudra (fury)
- Mood
- Cooling, obedient, controlled
Themes
- Dharma
- Satya
- Ethics
- Self-control
- Obedience to wise counsel
- De-escalation
Buddhi guided by śāstra/satpuruṣa-vākya subdues rajas (anger), restoring sattva.
Muṇḍaka’s stress on śraddhā and disciplined conduct: hearing right counsel becomes transformative.
- Bharata and Shatrughna
- Brothers; Bharata’s words restrain Śatrughna (protective)
- Shatrughna and Manthara
- Aggressor vs instigator; physical violence then release (hostile)
- Shatrughna and Lakshmana
- Brothers (Śatrughna as Lakṣmaṇa’s younger)
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.78.24-25 (motivation for restraint: fear of Rāma’s censure)
Mahābhārata: counsel restraining wrath (e.g., Vidura-nīti type restraint motifs)
Ayodhyākāṇḍa: Bharata as voice of dharma and self-restraint in crisis episodes
Anuṣṭup
Narrative
Even-paced with a resolving cadence on "मन्थराम्"
FAQs
Listening to righteous counsel and mastering anger is itself dharma; restraint prevents compounding one wrong with another.
Bharata intervenes, and Śatrughna—though furious—halts and lets Mantharā go.
Śatrughna’s capacity for self-restraint: despite intense anger, he submits to dharmic guidance.
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