Valmiki Ramayana 2.64.41: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 64, Shloka 41
शब्दवेध्य-अनर्थः, ऋषिशापः, दशरथस्य प्राणत्यागः
The Sound-Target Tragedy, the Sage’s Curse, and Dasaratha’s Death
Spoken by Shravana's Parents
अपापोऽसि यदा पुत्र निहतः पापकर्मणा ।
तेन सत्येन गच्छाऽऽशु ये लोकाश्शस्त्रयोधिनाम् ॥४१॥
apāpo 'si yadā putra nihataḥ pāpakarmaṇā |
tena satyena gacchāśu ye lokāḥ śastrayodhinām ||41||
ఓ పుత్రా, నీవు నిరపరాధివి; పాపకర్ముడిచేత నిహతుడవైనావు. ఆ సత్యబలంతో శీఘ్రంగా శస్త్రధారులైన వీరయోధులకు లభించే లోకాలకు వెళ్లుము.
Sandhi Notes
- अपापोऽसि = अपापः + असि
- गच्छाऽऽशु = गच्छ + आशु
- लोकाश्शस्त्रयोधिनाम् = लोकाः + शस्त्रयोधिनाम् (विसर्ग-सन्धि: ः + श → श्श)
'O sinless son, you are killed by a person of sinful deeds. On this truth, quickly go to those worlds which are attained by those valiant heroes.
The teaching
Even amid loss, uphold satya and recognize that righteous death in battle leads to an honored destiny; moral agency (pāpakarman) bears its own consequence.
Duties in tension
- Grief of a mother vs kṣatriya ideal of heroic death
- Personal loss vs cosmic justice (puṇya/pāpa)
- Ethical theme
- Kṣatriya-dharma / karma-phala
- How it resolves
- Consolation through satya and dharma-based assurance of auspicious gati
Devotion and practice
Practice of satya-vāk and remembrance of dharma at the time of death; transforms grief into prayerful benediction.
- Mantra
- तेन सत्येन गच्छाशु
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Karuna (compassion), with Vira (heroism)
- Mood
- Lamenting, benedictory, martial
Themes
- Dharma
- Satya
- Ethics
- Blessing
- Afterlife destinies
Satya as a performative शक्ति (śakti) that ‘carries’ the jīva toward an auspicious gati; karma determines gati though the Self remains untouched (asaṅga).
Chāndogya/ Bṛhadāraṇyaka themes: ‘yathā karma yathā śrutam’—destiny according to deed and knowledge; satya as highest dharma.
- Mother and Son
- Mother consoling deceased son with blessing (compassionate)
Mahābhārata, Bhagavadgītā 2.31-2.37 (kṣatriya-dharma; death in battle); Mahābhārata, Karṇa-parvan/ Bhīṣma-parvan motifs of vīra-svarga for fallen facing the foe
Vedic satya-vrata and satya as dharma (Ṛgveda satya/ṛta nexus)
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa: recurrent ‘vīra-loka’/‘svarga’ assurances to fallen warriors in Yuddhakāṇḍa laments
Anuṣṭup
Grieving
Mandra-gāndhāra with gentle rise on ‘tena satyena’
FAQs
Satya is presented as a potent moral force: the father’s truthful recognition of the son’s innocence becomes the basis of a blessing and righteous passage.
After learning of his son’s death, the blind father blesses Śravaṇa, affirming his purity and directing him to a noble posthumous destiny.
Truthfulness joined with compassion: despite grief, the father speaks a satya-based benediction for his son’s welfare.
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