Valmiki Ramayana 2.96.2: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 96, Shloka 2
चित्रकूटे सैन्यधूलिशब्ददर्शनम्
Alarm at Chitrakūṭa: Lakṣmaṇa sights the approaching army
Addressed to SitaSetting: Forest dwelling/resting spot during exile where food is prepared by fireCamp-life/rest during exile
इदं मेध्यमिदं स्वादु निष्टप्तमिदमग्निना ।
एवमास्ते स धर्मात्मा सीतया सह राघवः ॥२॥
idaṃ medhyam idaṃ svādu niṣṭaptam idam agninā |
evam āste sa dharmātmā sītayā saha rāghavaḥ ||2||
राम सीता के पास बैठ के खाना दे रहे थे। बोले, यह शुद्ध है, यह मीठा है, यह आग पर पक्का है। धरम वाला राम ऐसे ही बैठा था सीता के साथ।
Sandhi Notes
- मेध्यमिदं = मेध्यम् + इदम्
- निष्टप्तमिदमग्निना = निष्टप्तम् + इदम् + अग्निना
- एवमास्ते = एवम् + आस्ते
Offering Sita several kinds of preparations to eat, righteous Rama, seated in her company remarked, This meat is savoury, this meat roasted on fire is sacred.
The teaching
Even in hardship, dharma expresses itself as purity, restraint, and compassionate care in daily acts.
- Ethical theme
- Gṛhastha-dharma transposed to vānaprastha-like exile life
For your practice
Mindful eating and offering (anna-śuddhi) as sādhanā; cultivate gratitude and purity in sustenance.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace), with Shringara (love)
- Mood
- Domestic, pure, gentle
Themes
- Dharma
- Satya
- Itihasa
- Ethics
- Domestic dharma
- Ritual purity
Seeing the sacred in ordinary sustenance aligns with karma-yoga: action (cooking/feeding) offered in purity without ego.
Agni as purifier and the sanctity of food recalls Taittirīya Upaniṣad’s food teaching (annam as foundational), thematically echoed though not quoted.
- Rama and Sita
- Husband caring for wife in exile (tender, protective)
Taittirīya Upaniṣad: annam and purity teachings (thematic); Bhagavadgītā 3.13: purity of food and yajña-bhāva (conceptual parallel)
Vedic agni as purifier; gṛhya notions of medhya/śuci food
Ayodhyākāṇḍa: repeated depiction of Rāma’s dharmic gentleness toward Sītā in exile conditions
Anuṣṭup (śloka)
Solemn gentle
Soft mandra start, even cadence; warmth on phrases "मेध्यम्" "स्वादु"
FAQs
Dharma here appears as mindful, disciplined living—maintaining purity and propriety (medhya) even in exile, showing that righteousness includes everyday conduct, not only heroic acts.
Rāma and Sītā are seated together in the forest, taking food; the narration highlights their simple, regulated life just before the tension of an approaching army becomes apparent in later verses.
Rāma’s dharmic steadiness—calm orderliness and care for what is proper and pure, even under hardship.
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