Ramayana — Yuddha Kanda, Sarga 83, Shloka 17
त्र्यशीतितमः सर्गः (Sarga 83)
Hanumān Reports Sītā’s ‘Slaying’; Rāma Collapses; Lakṣmaṇa’s Counter-Discourse on Dharma and Artha
यद्यधर्मोभवेद्भूतोरावणोनरकंव्रजेत् ।भवांश्चधर्मसम्युक्तोनैवंव्यसनमाप्नुयात् ।।6.83.17।।
yady adharmaḥ bhaved bhūto rāvaṇo narakaṃ vrajet |
bhavāṃś ca dharma-samyukto naivaṃ vyasanam āpnuyāt ||6.83.17||
அதர்மம் உண்மையிலே ஒரு செயலாற்றும் சக்தியாக இருந்தால், ராவணன் நரகத்திற்குச் சென்றிருப்பான்; தர்மம் நிறைந்த நீர் இத்தகைய துன்பத்தை அடைந்திருக்க மாட்டீர்।
" As Ravana has no sorrow and you have experienced agony the contraries of each other have changed the roles of righteousness and unrighteousness."
FAQs
It questions karmic moral causality: if dharma/adharma reliably produced results, the wicked would immediately fall and the righteous would be protected.
The speaker contrasts Rāvaṇa’s apparent prosperity with the righteous side’s suffering to argue against a moral order.
The addressee’s dharma-yoga (being ‘joined to dharma’)—moral rectitude despite adversity.
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