Valmiki Ramayana 2.108.14: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 108, Shloka 14

जाबाल्युपदेशः

Jabali’s Pragmatic Counsel to Rama

Devanagari script

अष्टका पितृदैवत्यमित्ययं प्रसृतो जनः।अन्नस्योपद्रवं पश्य मृतो हि किमशिष्यति।।।।

Sanskrit recitationValmiki Ramayana 2.108.14

Transliteration

aṣṭakā pitṛdaivatyam ity ayaṃ prasṛto janaḥ |

annasyopadravaṃ paśya mṛto hi kim aśiṣyati || 2.108.14 ||

Translation

ผู้คนหมกมุ่นอยู่ในพิธีอัษฏกะ คิดว่าบรรพชนเป็นดุจเทวะผู้ควรได้รับภักษา; จงดูความสูญเปล่าของอาหารเถิด—ผู้ตายจะกินสิ่งใดได้เล่า?

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Word by Word

• aṣṭakā: the Aṣṭakā rite
• aṣṭakā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aṣṭakā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• pitṛ-daivatyam: having the ancestors as deities
• pitṛ-daivatyam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ + daivatya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Prathamā/Vitīyā, Ekavacana; तत्पुरुषः: pitaraḥ devatā yasya (whose deities are the ancestors)

• iti: thus
• iti: Vākyārtha-dyotaka (वाक्यार्थ-द्योतक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: Quotative particle (इति-वाचक)

• ayam: this
• ayam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• prasṛtaḥ: engaged
• prasṛtaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra-sṛ (धातु) + kta (कृत्)
• Form: Kta-participle, Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; ‘set forth/engaged’

• janaḥ: people
• janaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• annasya: of food
• annasya: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Ṣaṣṭhī, Ekavacana

• upadravam: waste/harm
• upadravam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: upadrava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Vitīyā, Ekavacana

• paśya: see
• paśya: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: Loṭ (लोट्, imperative), Parasmaipada, Madhyama-puruṣa, Ekavacana

• mṛtaḥ: the dead man
• mṛtaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mṛ (धातु) + kta (कृत्)
• Form: Kta-participle used substantively, Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; ‘the dead (person)’

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: Nipāta, emphasis/cause

• kim: what
• kim: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Prathamā/Vitīyā, Ekavacana; interrogative pronoun

• aśiṣyati: will eat
• aśiṣyati: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: aś (धातु)
• Form: Luṭ (लुट्, periphrastic future), Parasmaipada, Prathama-puruṣa, Ekavacana

Context

People perform ashtaka ceremony for the spirits of ancestors and offer them food. Look at the amount of food being wasted. Will the dead (ever) eat food?

Characters & Entities

• Jābāli
• Rāma
• Pitṛs (ancestors)

FAQs

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

The verse attacks ritual dharma by denying any efficacy of offerings to ancestors; within the Ramayana’s ethical frame, it functions as a deliberately provocative stance against inherited sacred duties.

What is the narrative situation?

Jābāli attempts to dislodge Rāma’s reverence for ancestral obligation by mocking pitṛ-rites as mere waste, supporting his broader plea that Rāma abandon exile.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Rāma’s reverence for tradition and duty (pitṛ-bhakti and dharma-śraddhā) is implicitly challenged, preparing for his principled rebuttal.