Shloka 9

द्वैतवनगमनम् (Dvāitavana-gamanam) — Journey and Settlement at Dvaita Forest-Lake

Devanagari script

स चापि राजा सह लक्ष्मणेन वने निवासं पितुरेव शासनात्‌ । धन्वी चरन्‌ पार्थ मयैव दृष्टो गिरे: पुरा ऋष्यमूकस्य सानौ,कुन्तीनन्दन! प्राचीनकालकी बात है राजा रामचन्द्रजी भी अपने पिताकी आज्ञासे ही केवल धनुष हाथमें लिये लक्ष्मणके साथ वनमें निवास एवं भ्रमण करते थे। उस समय ऋष्यमूकपर्वतके शिखरपर मैंने ही उनका भी दर्शन किया था

Transliteration

sa cāpi rājā saha lakṣmaṇena vane nivāsaṃ pitur eva śāsanāt | dhanvī caran pārtha mayaiva dṛṣṭo gireḥ purā ṛṣyamūkasya sānau, kuntīnandana!

Translation

Mārkaṇḍeya said: “And that king (Rāma) too, together with Lakṣmaṇa, lived and wandered in the forest solely in obedience to his father’s command, bearing his bow. O son of Pṛthā, long ago I myself saw him on the slope of Mount Ṛṣyamūka, O son of Kuntī.” The verse highlights exemplary filial obedience and steadfast adherence to dharma even amid hardship.

Word by Word

• {'saḥ': 'he (that person)', 'cāpi': 'and also', 'rājā': 'king', 'saha': 'together with', 'lakṣmaṇena': 'with Lakṣmaṇa (instrumental)', 'vane': 'in the forest', 'nivāsam': 'dwelling, residence', 'pituḥ': 'of (his) father', 'eva': 'indeed, only', 'śāsanāt': 'from the command/ आदेश (ablative)', 'dhanvī': 'bow-bearing, archer', 'caran': 'moving about, wandering', 'pārtha': 'O Pārtha (Arjuna), son of Pṛthā', 'mayā eva': 'by me alone / I myself', 'dṛṣṭaḥ': 'seen', 'gireḥ': 'of the mountain', 'purā': 'formerly, long ago', 'ṛṣyamūkasya': 'of Ṛṣyamūka (mountain)', 'sānau': 'on the slope/ridge (locative)', 'kuntīnandana': 'O son of Kuntī'}

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Rāma (Rāmacandra)
• Lakṣmaṇa
• Arjuna (Pārtha)
• Kuntī
• Daśaratha (implied as 'father')
• Ṛṣyamūka mountain
• Forest (vana)
• Bow (dhanus)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse presents Rāma as a model of dharma: he accepts forest life not out of weakness but out of principled obedience to his father’s command, showing that ethical duty can outweigh personal comfort and royal privilege.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sage Mārkaṇḍeya addresses Arjuna, recalling an ancient event: he personally saw Rāma, bow in hand, living and roaming in the forest with Lakṣmaṇa, on the slopes of Mount Ṛṣyamūka.