Valmiki Ramayana 2.39.29: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 39, Shloka 29
एकोनचत्वारिंशः सर्गः · Dasaratha’s Lament, Sumantra’s Commission, and Sita’s Vow of Marital Dharma
नातन्त्री वाद्यते वीणा नाचक्रो वर्तते रथः ।
नापतिस्सुखमेधेत या स्यादपि शतात्मजा ॥२९॥
nātantrī vādyate vīṇā nācakro vartate rathaḥ |
nā patiḥ sukham edheta yā syād api śatātmajā ||29||
วีณาที่ไร้สายย่อมบรรเลงไม่ได้ รถศึกที่ไร้ล้อย่อมเคลื่อนไม่ได้ ฉันใด หญิงที่ไร้สามีย่อมไม่เจริญในความสุข แม้มีบุตรถึงร้อยคนก็ตาม
A veena (lute) sans strings cannot be played. A chariot without wheels cannot move. Similarly, a woman without her husband finds no happiness even though she has one hundred sons.
FAQs
The verse asserts a traditional dharmic ideal of marital unity: the wife’s well-being is presented as inseparable from her husband’s presence and role. It uses concrete analogies to argue for the centrality of the marital bond.
Sītā speaks to Kauśalyā while affirming her commitment to Rāma and the values that define her understanding of wifely duty, in the context of Rāma’s impending forest exile.
Sītā’s steadfastness (niṣṭhā) and loyalty (pativratā-bhāva) are emphasized through her uncompromising identification with her husband’s fate.
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