Valmiki Ramayana 2.75.40: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 75, Shloka 40

अयोध्याकाण्डे पञ्चसप्ततितमः सर्गः

Sarga 75: Bharata and Kausalya · Reproach, Oaths, and Reconciliation

Devanagari script

कपालपाणिः पृथिवीमटतां चीरसंवृतः ।

भिक्षमाणो यथोन्मत्तो यस्यार्योऽनुमते गतः ॥४०॥

Recitation with translationValmiki Ramayana 2.75.40

Transliteration

kapālapāṇiḥ pṛthivīm aṭatāṃ cīrasaṃvṛtaḥ |

bhikṣamāṇo yathonmatto yasyāryo ’numate gataḥ ||40||

Translation

यस्य अनुमत्या मम आर्यः भ्राता निर्वासितः, स कपालपाणिः चीरसंवृतो भूमिं पर्यटतु; उन्मत्त इव भिक्षां याचमानो विचरतु।

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Word by Word

• kapāla-pāṇiḥ: with a skull in hand
• kapāla-pāṇiḥ: Visheshana (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kapāla (प्रातिपदिक) + pāṇi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); ṣaṣṭhī-tatpuruṣa: 'one whose hand has a skull' (skull-in-hand)

• pṛthivīm: the earth
• pṛthivīm: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pṛthivī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• aṭatām: let (him) wander
• aṭatām: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: aṭ (धातु)
• Form: Imperative (लोट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Plural (बहुवचन), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपदम); benedictive/curse-like: 'let (him) wander' (plural used for honor/impersonal)

• cīra-saṃvṛtaḥ: clad in rags/bark garments
• cīra-saṃvṛtaḥ: Visheshana (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: cīra (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃvṛta (कृदन्त)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); tatpuruṣa: 'covered with rags/bark-cloth'

• bhikṣamāṇaḥ: begging
• bhikṣamāṇaḥ: Visheshana (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhikṣ (धातु)
• Form: Present active participle (कृत्: शतृ), Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• yathā: like/as
• yathā: Upamana-marker (उपमानसूचकः)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: Upamā/Prakāra-avyaya (यथाशब्दः), indeclinable

• unmattaḥ: mad/insane
• unmattaḥ: Visheshana (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: unmatta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• yasya: whose
• yasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्धः)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन)

• āryaḥ: the noble one
• āryaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ārya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• anumate: with approval
• anumate: Hetu (हेतुः)
• Type: Verb
• Root: anu+man (धातु)
• Form: Past passive participle used as locative of cause/permission (कृत्: क्त), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग) or adverbial-locative; Locative (सप्तमी), Singular (एकवचन): 'with consent/permission'

• gataḥ: gone (into exile)
• gataḥ: Visheshana (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: Past active participle (कृत्: क्त), Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); 'gone/exiled'

Context

May the one who counselled the exile of my esteemed brother, wander this earth, begging alms, holding a human skull like an insane man dressed in rags!

Characters & Entities

• Bharata
• Rāma
• Earth (pṛthivī)

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

Adharma that disrupts rightful order is imagined to lead to loss of dignity and social standing; dharma is tied to honor, sanity, and rightful belonging in society.

What is the narrative situation?

Bharata’s denunciation culminates in an image of extreme disgrace—homeless wandering and begging—contrasting with Rāma’s undeserved forest-life.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Bharata’s moral seriousness: he treats the exile of the righteous as a crime that deserves the harshest symbolic consequences.