Valmiki Ramayana 2.24.3: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 24, Shloka 3
कौशल्यारामसंवादः · Kausalya
Rama Dialogue on Exile-Dharma
यस्य भृत्याश्च दासाश्च मृष्टान्यन्नानि भुञ्जते ।
कथं स भोक्ष्यतेऽनाथो वने मूलफलान्ययम् ॥३॥
yasya bhṛtyāś ca dāsāś ca mṛṣṭāny annāni bhuñjate |
kathaṃ sa bhokṣyate ’nātho vane mūlaphalāny ayam ||3||
Dia yang biasa melihat para hamba dan pelayan menikmati makanan yang lazat; bagaimana dia, tanpa tempat bergantung, akan hidup di rimba ini dengan hanya memakan akar dan buah?
How will Rama live on roots and fruits in the forest hereafter when his servants and attendants enjoy delicious food (here)?
FAQs
The verse foregrounds compassionate concern and the human cost of dharma-driven renunciation—Kauśalyā’s love measures the hardship Rāma will endure when he accepts exile.
In Ayodhyā, as Rāma prepares for forest exile, Kauśalyā laments how someone raised in royal comfort can subsist on austere forest fare.
Kauśalyā’s maternal compassion and protective anxiety—virtues that coexist with respect for Rāma’s dharmic resolve.
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