Shloka 31
Dyumatsena’s Restoration and Sāvitrī’s Disclosure of Yama’s Boons (आरण्यकपर्व, अध्याय २८२)
अनिन्द्य अंगोंवाली सीतासे ऐसा कहकर राक्षसराज रावण वहीं अन्तर्धान हो अभीष्ट दिशाकी ओर चल दिया ।। राक्षसीभि: परिवृता वैदेही शोककर्शिता । सेव्यमाना त्रिजटया तत्रैव न्न्यवसत् तदा
anindya-aṅgāvalī sītāse evaṃ kahitvā rākṣasarāja rāvaṇaḥ tatraiva antardhānaḥ bhūtvā abhīṣṭa-diśaṃ prati calitaḥ || rākṣasībhiḥ parivṛtā vaidehī śoka-karśitā | sevyamānā trijaṭayā tatraiva nyavasat tadā ||
Having spoken thus to Sītā of blameless limbs, Rāvaṇa, king of the rākṣasas, vanished on the spot and departed toward the direction he desired. Vaidehī, worn down by grief, remained there then—surrounded by rākṣasī women, yet attended and cared for by Trijaṭā. The passage underscores the ethical contrast between coercive power and steadfast chastity, and hints at compassion persisting even within hostile captivity.
मार्कण्डेय उवाच