Valmiki Ramayana 2.52.98: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 52, Shloka 98
गङ्गातरणम्, सुमन्त्र-प्रतिनिवर्तनम्, जटाधारणम्
Crossing the Gaṅgā; Sumantra’s Return; Adoption of Ascetic Signs
Spoken by Rama to LakṣmaṇaSetting: A desolate forest region lacking settlements, fields, and gardens; rough ground with ravines and precipicesFirst full entry into harsh wilderness
प्रणष्टजनसम्बाधं क्षेत्रारामविवर्जितम् ।
विषमं च प्रपातं च वनमद्य प्रवेक्ष्यति ॥९८॥
praṇaṣṭa-jana-sambādhaṃ kṣetrārāma-vivarjitam |
viṣamaṃ ca prapātaṃ ca vanam adya pravekṣyati ||98||
Dziś ona wejdzie do lasu pustego od tłumów, pozbawionego pól i ogrodów, nierównego i trudnego do przebycia, poprzecinanego wąwozami i stromymi spadkami.
Sandhi Notes
- Compounds resolved: praṇaṣṭa-jana-sambādham
- kṣetrārāmavivarjitam = kṣetra-ārāma-vivarjitam
Now she will enter the forest which is devoid of concourse of people, farms and pleasure groves and which is uneven and inaccessible and full of deep ditches.
The teaching
Dharma may require stepping into uncultivated, uneven terrain—externally and internally—without clinging to former comforts.
Duties in tension
- Commitment to exile-dharma and spousal togetherness vs the moral impulse to preserve safety and comfort
- Royal/household norms vs ascetic wilderness demands
- Ethical theme
- Tapas/tyāga-oriented dharma (austerity and relinquishment)
- How it resolves
- Embracing austerity as chosen dharma with prudent caution
For your practice
Meditation on vairāgya: recognize the fragility of cultivated comforts; practice steadiness when the ‘ground’ becomes uneven.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Karuna (compassion), with Bhayanaka (fear)
- Mood
- Desolate, rugged, ominous
Themes
- Dharma
- Satya
- Vanavāsa
- Austerity
- Itihasa
- Ethics
Leaving ‘fields and gardens’ symbolizes withdrawal from cultivated sense-pleasures; the uneven forest mirrors the mind’s rough terrain that must be traversed with steadiness.
Forest (araṇya) as a traditional locus of inner inquiry (Āraṇyaka spirit): the outer wilderness reflects the inward turn from social noise to essential reality.
- Rama and Sita
- Husband describing the harsh terrain she will enter; protective concern (compassionate)
- Sita and Forest
- Gentle princess confronting austerity and wildness (foreboding)
- Rama and Lakshmana
- Shared awareness of terrain hazards; implicit coordination (serious)
Valmiki Ramayana 2.52.97 (Sita will know hardship); Valmiki Ramayana 3.1 (descriptions of Daṇḍaka wilderness)
Rāmacaritamānasa Araṇya-kāṇḍa: emphasis on the contrast between royal comfort and forest austerity (thematic parallel); Mahābhārata Vana-parvan: wilderness descriptions lacking cultivated spaces
Ayodhyākāṇḍa: repeated contrast of Ayodhyā’s prosperity vs forest deprivation across exile narrative
Anuṣṭup
Narrative
Measured, descriptive svara with slight descent on ‘prapātaṃ ca’ to mark danger
FAQs
Dharma is portrayed as lived discipline: choosing righteousness entails leaving comfort and social protection, and accepting austere surroundings with truthfulness and resolve.
Rāma describes the nature of the wilderness Sītā is about to enter—contrasting it with civilized life of fields, gardens, and people.
Sītā’s anticipated fortitude (sahana-śīlatā): her willingness to share exile implies courage and devotion.
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