Valmiki Ramayana 6.13.12: Yuddha Kanda, Sarga 13, Shloka 12
महापार्श्वस्य परामर्शः · Mahāpārśva’s Counsel and Rāvaṇa’s Confession of Brahmā’s Curse
Spoken by Ravana to MahaparsvaSetting: Brahmā’s abode (Svayambhū-bhavana) reached after aerial passagePlaces named: स्वयम्भूभवनम् (Brahmā’s abode)Arrival at Brahmaloka after assault
साप्रसह्यमयाभुक्ताकृताविवसनाततः ।
स्वयम्भूभवनंप्राप्तालोलितानलिनीयथा ॥१२॥
sā prasahya mayā bhuktā kṛtā vivasanā tataḥ |
svayambhūbhavanaṃ prāptā lolitānalinī yathā ||12||
मैंने उसके साथ ज़बरदस्ती की। उसके कपड़े भी मैंने उतार दिए। फिर वो ब्रह्मा के घर पहुँच गई। वो इतना काँप रही थी, जैसे कमल का डंडा हवा में हिल रहा हो।
Sandhi Notes
- साप्रसह्य = सा + प्रसह्य
- मयाभुक्ता = मया + भुक्ता
- कृताविवसना = कृता + विवसना
- विवसनाततः = विवसना + ततः
- स्वयम्भूभवनंप्राप्ता = स्वयम्भूभवनम् + प्राप्ता
- प्राप्तालोलिता = प्राप्ता + लोलिता
- लोलितानलिनी = लोलिता + नलिनी
"Then her clothes were stripped off by me forcibly and enjoyed her. Then like a violently shaken lotus stem, she went to the abode of Brahma."
The teaching
Adharma against a woman invites immediate cosmic intervention; restraint may be imposed when inner discipline fails.
Duties in tension
- Kāma vs dharma (self-restraint)
- Power/impulse vs protection of the vulnerable
- Personal desire vs cosmic law (ṛta)
- Ethical theme
- Sexual violence / abuse of power / justice
- How it resolves
- External restraint via divine curse (daṇḍa)
For your practice
Reflection on ahiṃsā and brahmacarya/saṃyama; seeking refuge in dharma and divine justice when wronged.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Bibhatsa (disgust), with Karuna (compassion)
- Mood
- Violent, shameful, shaken
Themes
- Dharma
- Satya
- Itihasa
- Ethics
- Adharma
- Violence
- Consent
- Consequences
Violation born of tamas/rajas binds the agent to consequences; the shaken lotus suggests the jīva’s vulnerability when dharma is assaulted.
Lotus imagery resonates with purity amid disturbance; the contrast highlights how adharma agitates the mind (citta-kṣobha).
- Punjikasthala and Brahma
- Appeal to cosmic justice/refuge after violation (distressed yet trusting)
Mahābhārata: narratives where assault on a woman triggers divine/royal sanction (e.g., Draupadī episode as thematic parallel)
Dharmaśāstra ethos: protection of women and condemnation of बलात्कार (force)
Yuddhakāṇḍa 6.13: leads directly to Brahmā’s curse that restrains Rāvaṇa from forced approach thereafter
Anuṣṭup (śloka)
Solemn
Lower register with heavy nyāsa on ‘प्रसह्य’ and ‘विवसनाततः’ to mark gravity
FAQs
Dharma unequivocally condemns coercion and violation: harming another’s bodily autonomy is adharma, generating trauma and moral consequence, and stands opposed to satya and righteousness.
Rāvaṇa confesses a past act of sexual violence against Puñjikasthalā and describes her shaken state as she goes to Brahmā’s abode.
The verse highlights the absence of virtue in Rāvaṇa’s act and underscores the victim’s suffering; ethically, it functions as a stark illustration of adharma.
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