Valmiki Ramayana 2.12.74: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 12, Shloka 74
द्वादशः सर्गः · Kaikeyi’s Boons and Dasaratha’s Moral Collapse
Ayodhya Kanda 12
Spoken by Dasharatha to KaikeyiSetting: Ayodhyā (palace)Places named: mahāvana (great forest)Ráma already seen as departing/away in mahā-vana (great forest)
न हि राममहं दृष्ट्वा प्रवसन्तं महावने ॥७४॥
चिरं जीवितुमाशंसे रुदन्तीं चापि मैथिलीम् ।
na hi rāmamahaṃ dṛṣṭvā pravasantaṃ mahāvane ||74||
ciraṃ jīvitumāśaṃse rudantīṃ cāpi maithilīm |
Sesungguhnya, setelah melihat Rama tinggal jauh di rimba besar, dan Maithili juga menangis, aku tidak berharap dapat hidup lama.
Sandhi Notes
- प्रव्राजिते रामे = locative absolute
- जीवितुमुत्सहे = जीवितुम् + उत्सहे
With Rama living in the wilderness and Sita crying, I do not hope to survive for long, indeed.
The teaching
When dharma is compromised, even the powerful become powerless before sorrow; inner steadiness is essential to bear dharmic trials.
Duties in tension
- Daƺratha’s duty to remain steadfast as king vs overwhelming paternal grief
- Upholding promises vs preserving life and justice
- Ethical theme
- Rájadharma under emotional collapse
- How it resolves
- Tragic surrender to grief; foreshadows death
For your practice
Invites contemplation on Rāma as dharma itself; encourages surrender (śaraƴ7āgati) when personal strength fails.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Karuna (compassion)
- Mood
- Life-ebbing, unbearable separation, tear-soaked
Themes
- Dharma
- Ethics
- Grief
- Kingship under moral strain
- Family duty
The king’s inability to 'live long' without Ráma shows dependence on external supports; Vedānta points toward inner anchoring beyond relational loss.
The fragility of life under grief resonates with teachings on mƵtyu and the need for inner refuge (ātman) beyond changing circumstances.
- Dasharatha and Rama
- Father-son (despairing love)
- Dasharatha and Sita
- Father-in-law–daughter-in-law (compassionate sorrow)
- Rama and Sita
- Husband-wife (shared suffering (implied))
Mahábhárata: elders’ laments that life is not worth living after sons’ departure/death (thematic parallel); Rámacaritamánasa: Daƺratha’s collapse upon Rāma’s exile
Classical topos: separation from the beloved as life-ending (viraha-maraƴ7a)
Ayodhyákáƴ7ǚ: Daƺratha’s imminent death; repeated statements of inability to endure Rāma’s absence
Anuƶ3ubh (śloka)
Grieving
Very slow vilambita; deep mandra on 'na hi' and heavy nyāsa on 'jīvitum āśaƴ3se'
FAQs
The verse shows how adharma fractures the moral heart of a household and ruler: when the righteous are made to suffer, the elder who should protect them experiences self-consuming remorse.
Daśaratha, overwhelmed, declares that witnessing Rāma’s forest life and Sītā’s tears will shorten his own life.
Paternal devotion and moral responsibility: Daśaratha’s identity as protector collapses under the pain of failing Rāma and Sītā.
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