Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 23, Shloka 11
लक्ष्मणक्रोधः—दैवपुरुषकारविवादः
Lakshmana’s Wrath and the Debate on Destiny vs Human Effort
येनेय मागता द्वैधं तव बुद्धिर्महामते।स हि धर्मो मम द्वेष्यः प्रसङ्गाद्यस्य मुह्यसि।।।।
yeneyaṃ āgatā dvaidhaṃ tava buddhir mahāmate | sa hi dharmo mama dveṣyaḥ prasaṅgād yasya muhyasi ||
हे महामते! येन धर्मेण तव बुद्धिर्द्वैधमागता, यस्य प्रसङ्गाद् मुह्यसि, स धर्मो मम द्वेष्य एव॥
O noble minded one! I hate this righteousness which has deluded your intellect and created this dilemma about this issue.
FAQs
Not every claim of ‘dharma’ is ethically sound; Lakṣmaṇa challenges a rigid interpretation of duty that produces confusion and enables injustice.
Seeing Rāma inclined to accept a painful command, Lakṣmaṇa denounces the kind of duty that traps Rāma in hesitation.
Moral courage—Lakṣmaṇa dares to question a prevailing notion of dharma when it seems to protect wrongdoing.