Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 42, Shloka 17
उत्थास्यति च मेदिन्याः कृपणः पांसुकुण्ठितः।विनिश्श्वसन् प्रस्रवणात्करेणूनामिवर्षभः।।।।
utthāsyati ca medinyāḥ kṛpaṇaḥ pāṃsukuṇṭhitaḥ | viniśśvasan prasravaṇāt kareṇūnām ivarṣabhaḥ ||
स कृपणो रामः पांसुकुण्ठितो मेदिन्याः उत्थास्यति; विनिश्श्वसन् प्रस्रवणात् करेणूनामिवर्षभ इव।
That unfortunate Rama, having been covered with dust, will get up from the ground sighing like a bull elephant rising from mount Prasravana.
FAQs
It reflects compassion within dharma: even when exile is ‘lawful’ by vows, the righteous heart recognizes suffering and responds with empathy rather than cold justification.
Daśaratha imagines Rāma enduring physical hardship—dust, ground-sleeping—and compares his rising to an elephant’s powerful movement.
Rāma’s strength under hardship (dhairya) is implied, while Daśaratha’s compassion is explicit.