Shloka 5

Devanagari script

वैशम्पायन उवाच असम्भवे हेममयस्य जन्तो- स्तथापि रामो लुलुभे मृगाय । प्रायः समासन्नपरा भवाणां धियो विपर्यस्ततरा भवन्ति,वैशम्पायनजी कहते हैं--जनमेजय! किसी जानवरका शरीर सुवर्णका हो, यह सम्भव नहीं; तथापि श्रीराम स्वर्णमय प्रतीत होनेवाले मृगके लिये लुभा गये। जिनका पतन या पराभव निकट होता है, उनकी बुद्धि प्राय: अत्यन्त विपरीत हो जाती है

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | asambhave hemamayasya jantoḥ tathāpi rāmo lulubhe mṛgāya | prāyaḥ samāsannaparā bhavāṇāṃ dhiyo viparyastatarā bhavanti ||

Translation

ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。「人よ、生きものの身体が黄金でできているなどあり得ぬ。だがラーマは黄金に見える鹿に心を奪われた。没落が迫る者の知恵は、たいていさらに逆しまに転じ、誤りを深めるものだ。」

Word by Word

वैशम्पायनःVaiśampāyana

उवाचsaid

असम्भवेin (a state of) impossibility

हेममयस्यof golden-made (golden)

जन्तोःof an animal/creature

तथापिnevertheless

रामःRāma

लुलुभेbecame desirous / was tempted

मृगायfor the deer

प्रायःgenerally, for the most part

समासन्नपराthose for whom the end/defeat is near

भवाणाम्of you (honorific plural)

धियःintellects, thoughts

विपर्यस्ततराmore perverted / more contrary

भवन्तिbecome, are

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Rāma

golden deer (hemamaya mṛga)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

When ruin is imminent, discernment collapses: people become attracted to what is impossible or deceptive, and their judgment turns increasingly inverted.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana illustrates a general moral principle by citing Rāma’s moment of being drawn toward the seemingly golden deer—despite the impossibility of a truly gold-bodied animal—showing how delusion can arise when misfortune is near.