Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 39, Shloka 3
एकोनचत्वारिंशः सर्गः
Dasaratha’s Lament, Sumantra’s Commission, and Sita’s Vow of Marital Dharma
स मुहूर्तमिवासंज्ञो दुःखितश्च महीपतिः।विललाप महाबाहू राममेवानुचिन्तयन्।।2.39.3।।
sa muhūrtam ivāsaṃjño duḥkhitaś ca mahīpatiḥ |
vilalāpa mahābāhū rāmam evānucintayan ||2.39.3||
Đại vương, chúa tể cõi đất, đôi tay hùng mạnh, vì sầu khổ mà như ngất đi trong chốc lát; rồi than khóc, tâm trí chỉ một mực nghĩ đến Rāma.
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 highlights the human cost of dharmic decisions: even a righteous king can be broken by sorrow when duty and affection collide. It frames Daśaratha’s suffering as part of the moral gravity surrounding Rāma’s exile.
After the developments leading to Rāma’s departure for the forest, Daśaratha is overcome by grief and briefly becomes almost unconscious, lamenting while thinking only of Rāma.
Daśaratha’s deep paternal love (vātsalya) is emphasized, alongside the implied burden of royal duty that has brought him to this crisis.