Valmiki Ramayana 2.39.41: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 39, Shloka 41

एकोनचत्वारिंशः सर्गः · Dasaratha’s Lament, Sumantra’s Commission, and Sita’s Vow of Marital Dharma

Setting: Ayodhya—Daśaratha’s palace (veśma)Places named: Ayodhya

Devanagari script

मुरजपणवमेघघोषवत् दशरथवेश्म बभूव यत्पुरा ।

विलपितपरिदेवनाकुलं व्यसनगतं तदभूत्सुदुःखितम् ॥४१॥

Recitation with translationValmiki Ramayana 2.39.41

Transliteration

muraja-paṇava-megha-ghoṣavad daśaratha-veśma babhūva yat purā |

vilapita-paridevanākulaṃ vyasana-gataṃ tad abhūt su-duḥkhitam ||41||

Translation

Ang palasyo ni Daśaratha, na noon ay umaalingawngaw na parang kulog ng ulap sa tunog ng mṛdaṅga at paṇava, ngayo’y nilamon ng kapahamakan at naging lubhang malungkot, punô ng panaghoy at pagtangis.

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Word by Word

• muraja-paṇava-megha-ghoṣa-vat: resounding like the sound of drums and cloud-rumble
• Type: Adjective
• Root: muraja (प्रातिपदिक) + paṇava (प्रातिपदिक) + megha (प्रातिपदिक) + ghoṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + vat (तद्धित प्रत्यय)
• Form: Taddhitānta adjective (वत्), Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; used adverbially as a qualifier of the predicate sound/condition
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Compound: Tatpurusha

• daśaratha-veśma: Daśaratha’s palace
• Type: Noun
• Root: daśaratha (प्रातिपदिक) + veśman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive determinative): ‘of Daśaratha’ + ‘palace’
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Compound: Tatpurusha

• babhūva: became / was
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (धातु)
• Form: Luṅ (Aorist/लुङ्), Parasmaipada, 3rd Person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन)
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)

• yat: which
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; relative pronoun correlating with तत्
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)

• purā: formerly / earlier
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adverb of time (कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण)
• Role: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण)

• vilapita-paridevana-ākulam: filled with wailing and lamentation
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vilapita (कृदन्त; विलप् धातु) + paridevana (प्रातिपदिक) + ākula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; descriptive compound: ‘confused/filled’ (ākula) with ‘wailing and lamentation’
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Compound: Tatpurusha

• vyasana-gatam: fallen into calamity
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vyasana (प्रातिपदिक) + gata (कृदन्त; गम् धातु)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; past passive participle (क्त) ‘gone into calamity’
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Compound: Tatpurusha

• tat: that (palace)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; correlative pronoun to यत्
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)

• abhūt: became / was
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (धातु)
• Form: Luṅ (Aorist/लुङ्), Parasmaipada, 3rd Person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन)
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)

• su-duḥkhitam: very sorrowful
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + duḥkhita (कृदन्त; दुःख्/दुःख धातु/प्रातिपदिक-आधारित)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; intensifier सु + adjective ‘afflicted with sorrow’
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)

Sandhi Notes

• yatpurā → yat purā
• tadabhūt → tat abhūt
• murajapaṇavameghaghoṣavat is a multi-member compound with -vat taddhita
• vilapitaparidevanākulam → vilapita-paridevana-ākulam

Context

Dasaratha's palace which reverberated, like the rumblings of the cloud, with the sounds of drums and other musical instruments earlier, now immensely grief-sticken and trapped in calamity, is filled with wailings and lamentations.ityārṣē śrīmadrāmāyaṇē vālmīkīya ādikāvyē ayōdhyākāṇḍē ēkōnacatvāriṅśassargaḥ৷৷Thus ends the thirtyninth sarga of Ayodhyakanda of the holy Ramayana, the first epic composed by sage Valmiki.

The teaching

Prosperity’s noise can turn to lament overnight; governance and inner poise must not depend on circumstance.

Duties in tension

• Public celebration of succession vs. private mourning and crisis management
• Maintaining state stability vs. emotional collapse in the royal household

Ethical theme

Rāja-dharma; vairāgya lesson through reversal

How it resolves

Narrative contrast highlighting the need for steadiness in rāja-dharma

For your practice

Practice of equanimity (samatā) amid changing ‘sounds’ of life; reflection on impermanence.

Mood and themes

Rasa

Karuna (compassion)

Mood

Hushed-splendor, catastrophic, lament-filled

Themes

• Itihasa
• Dharma
• Impermanence
• Grief
• Calamity (Vyasana)

Symbolism

Cross references

Meter and recitation

Characters & Entities

• Daśaratha

FAQs

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

Impermanence of worldly splendor: royal joy and celebration can swiftly turn to lament when dharma-driven events (exile, truth-keeping) unfold.

What is the narrative situation?

The sarga closes with a stark contrast: the once-festive palace becomes a place of collective mourning due to the exile crisis.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Not a single virtue, but the epic’s moral atmosphere: dharma’s weight transforms an entire community’s emotional state.