Valmiki Ramayana 2.21.24: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 21, Shloka 24
अयोध्याकाण्डे एकविंशः सर्गः · Lakṣmaṇa’s militant counsel and Rāma’s dharma
based persuasion of Kausalyā
Spoken by Kausalya to RamaSetting: Ayodhyā palacePlaces named: vana (forest)
यथैव राजा पूज्यस्ते गौरवेण तथाऽस्म्यहम् ।
त्वां नाहमनुजानामि न गन्तव्यमितो वनम् ॥२४॥
yathaiva rājā pūjyas te gauraveṇa tathā 'smy aham |
tvāṃ nāham anujānāmi na gantavyam ito vanam ||24||
Như nhà vua đáng được con kính lễ vì uy nghi, thì mẹ đây cũng vậy. Mẹ không cho phép con; con chớ rời đây mà vào rừng.
Sandhi Notes
- यथैव = यथा + एव
- तथाऽस्म्यहम् = तथा + अस्मि + अहम्
- नाहम् = न + अहम्
- त्वां नाहमनुजानामि = त्वाम् + न + अहम् + अनुजानामि
- गन्तव्यमितो = गन्तव्यम् + इतः
Just as the king is worthy of your respectful homage, so am I. I will not permit you to go from here to the forest.
The teaching
Maternal authority is asserted as comparable to royal authority; dharma is not only public (rāja) but also intimate (mātṛ).
Duties in tension
- Obedience to father/king’s command
- Obedience to mother’s prohibition and her protection claim
- Personal vow to uphold dharma vs immediate compassion
- Ethical theme
- Authority conflict; family dharma vs royal dharma
For your practice
Invites reflection on honoring multiple authorities without contempt; cultivating steadiness amid conflicting injunctions.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Karuna (compassion), with Raudra (fury)
- Mood
- Insistent, protective, protesting
Themes
- Dharma
- Maryādā
- Authority
- Family Duty
- Consent and Obligation
Tension between pravṛtti-dharma (social order/obedience) and nivṛtti impulse (withdrawal); discernment (viveka) required though emotionally costly.
Implicit echo of duty to revere elders as divine authorities (mātṛ/pitṛ as deva), creating a conflict when their wills diverge.
- Kausalya and Rama
- Mother asserting authority; withholding consent (commanding-pleading)
- Rama and Dasharatha
- Son-father; obedience and reverence (reverent (implied))
- Kausalya and Dasharatha
- Queen-consort; shared parental authority (implied) (strained by circumstance)
- Rama and Forest
- Renunciant-aspirant trajectory (implied) (resolute (implied))
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.20-2.23: queens’ attempts to restrain Rāma (contextual parallels); Mahābhārata: conflicts of obedience to elders (general parallel, e.g., vows vs compassion); Rāmacaritamānasa, Ayodhyākāṇḍa: Kaushalyā’s resistance and lament (thematic)
Rāja-dharma: king as primary object of honor
Ayodhyākāṇḍa: Daśaratha’s binding promise leading to exile order
Anuṣṭup (śloka)
Commanding
Tāra emphasis on negation phrases: "na...anujānāmi"; firm nyāsa at "vanaम्"
FAQs
Dharma is argued through legitimate authority within the family: the mother claims a moral standing comparable to the father-king in receiving honor and obedience.
Kausalyā attempts to forbid Rāma’s departure by asserting her right to be obeyed and by withholding consent.
Reverence (gaurava) toward parents and adherence to household hierarchy (maryādā).
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