Valmiki Ramayana 2.44.31: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 44, Shloka 31
सुमित्रोपदेशः · Sumitra’s Consolation to Kausalya
Setting: Ayodhyā (palace)
निशम्य तल्लक्ष्मणमातृवाक्यं रामस्य मातुर्नरदेवपत्न्याः ।
सद्यश्शरीरे विननाश शोकः शरद्गतो मेघ इवाल्पतोयः ॥३१॥
niśamya tal lakṣmaṇa-mātṛ-vākyaṃ rāmasya mātur nara-deva-patnyāḥ |
sadyaḥ śarīre vinanāśa śokaḥ śarad-gato megha ivālpa-toyaḥ ||31||
ലക്ഷ്മണന്റെ മാതാവിന്റെ ആ വാക്കുകൾ കേട്ടപ്പോൾ, നരദേവപത്നിയായ രാമമാതാവിന്റെ ശരീരത്തിലുള്ള ശോകം ഉടൻ തന്നെ നശിച്ചു—ശരദ്കാലത്ത് അല്പജലമുള്ള മേഘം അകലുന്നതുപോലെ.
Sandhi Notes
- tallakṣmaṇamātṛvākyaṃ = tat + lakṣmaṇamātṛvākyaṃ (t+l→ll)
- mātur naradeva- = mātuḥ + naradeva- (ḥ→r)
- sadyaś śarīre = sadyaḥ + śarīre (ḥ→ś)
- megha ivālpatoyaḥ = meghaḥ + iva + alpatoyaḥ (ḥ→a? actually ḥ + i → r; iva+alpa→ivālpa)
On hearing the words of Lakshmana's mother the grief in the heart of the queen (Kausalya), mother of Rama, instantly disappeared like the autumnal cloud that holds but little rain.ityārṣē śrīmadrāmāyaṇē vālmīkīya ādikāvyē ayōdhyākāṇḍē catuścatvāriṅśassargaḥ৷৷Thus ends the fortyfourth sarga of Ayodhyakanda of the holy Ramayana, the first epic composed by sage Valmiki.
The teaching
Grief can vanish swiftly when steadied by dharmic understanding—like a thin autumn cloud dispersing.
- Ethical theme
- Śoka-nivṛtti / dharma-upadeśa
- How it resolves
- Śoka-prasamana through wise counsel and dharma framing
For your practice
Using dharmic reflection and wise listening (śravaṇa) to dissolve sorrow; cultivating śarad-like clarity of mind.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace), with Adbhuta (wonder)
- Mood
- Relieved, cleared, tranquil
Themes
- Dharma
- Consolation
- Ethics
- Mental Resilience
- Poetic Simile
Śoka as vṛtti that subsides when right knowledge/vision arises; like a thin cloud dispersing, avidyā-born sorrow is not intrinsic to the Self.
The ‘clearing’ motif parallels the Upaniṣadic movement from moha to prasāda—mind becoming like a clear sky when ignorance thins.
Śarad
- Kausalya and Sumitra
- Co-wives; recipient of consolation and healer (grateful)
- Kausalya and Rama
- Mother-son; grief dissolving through reassurance (tender)
- Sumitra and Lakshmana
- Mother-son; her words carry authority as Lakṣmaṇa’s mother (steadfast)
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.44.29 (cloud imagery; here reversed—cloud dissipates); Mahābhārata, Śānti Parva (similes of grief dispersing through wisdom—conceptual parallel)
Seasonal śarad imagery common in kāvya for clarity and dispersal
Ayodhyākāṇḍa: Kausalyā’s earlier lamentation; this marks its easing within the same sarga
Anuṣṭup (śloka)
Solemn
Lightened cadence, brighter register on ‘śarad-gata’ to mirror clearing
FAQs
Dharma-oriented counsel can dispel despair: when suffering is reframed through truth and righteousness, the mind regains steadiness and the body recovers from grief.
After Sumitrā’s counsel, Kausalyā’s intense sorrow subsides immediately; the narrator closes the episode with a seasonal simile.
Receptivity to wise counsel—Kausalyā’s capacity to regain composure when reminded of dharma and satya.
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