Shloka 34

अम्बाया रामजामदग्न्यशरणगमनम्

Ambā Seeks Refuge with Rāma Jāmadagnya

Devanagari script

अथवा ते मतिस्तत्र राजपुत्रि न वर्तते । यावच्छाल्वपतिं वीर॑ योजयाम्यत्र कर्मणि,अथवा राजकुमारी! यदि वहाँ जानेका तेरा विचार न हो तो मैं वीर शाल्वराजको ही पहले इस कार्यमें नियुक्त करूँ: (उसके साथ तेरा ब्याह करा दूँ)

Transliteration

athavā te matis tatra rājaputri na vartate | yāvac chālvapatiṁ vīraṁ yojayāmy atra karmaṇi ||

Translation

അല്ലെങ്കിൽ, രാജപുത്രി! അവിടെ പോകാനുള്ള നിന്റെ മനസ്സുറപ്പ് ഇല്ലെങ്കിൽ, ഈ കാര്യത്തിൽ ആദ്യം വീരനായ ശാൽവപതിയെ തന്നെ നിയോഗിക്കും—അർത്ഥം, നിന്റെ വിവാഹം അവനോടു ക്രമപ്പെടുത്തും.

Word by Word

अथवाor else

तेof you / your

मतिःintention, thought

तत्रthere

राजपुत्रिO princess

नnot

वर्ततेexists, is (present)

यावत्as long as / until

शाल्वपतिम्the lord of Śālva (Śālva-king)

वीरO hero

योजयामिI appoint / I engage / I yoke

अत्रhere

कर्मणिin the task / in the action

Speaker

राम उवाच

Characters & Entities

Rāma (speaker)

Rājaputrī (princess)

Śālva-pati (king of Śālva)

Śālva (kingdom)

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?

The verse highlights how royal duty and political-social obligations can drive decisions like marriage alliances; it also implicitly raises the ethical tension between personal intention (mati) and authoritative arrangement by a guardian/king.

What is happening in the narrative?

Rāma addresses a princess: if she does not intend to go to the proposed place/plan, he will instead engage the heroic king of Śālva in the matter—explicitly by arranging her marriage with him.