Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 61, Shloka 3
कौसल्याविलापः
Kausalya’s Lament and Ethical Analogies on Kingship
कथं नरवरश्रेष्ठ पुत्रौ तौ सह सीतया।दुःखितौ सुखसंवृद्धौ वने दुःखं सहिष्यतः।।2.61.3।।
kathaṃ naravaraśreṣṭha putrau tau saha sītayā | duḥkhitau sukhasaṃvṛddhau vane duḥkhaṃ sahiṣyataḥ || 2.61.3 ||
Ô bậc tối thượng trong hàng vua, làm sao hai người con ấy của ngài, cùng với Sītā—vốn được nuôi dưỡng trong an lạc mà nay chìm trong sầu khổ—có thể chịu đựng nỗi gian lao nơi rừng sâu?
O Dasaratha, the best among kings, how will your two sons and Sita brought up in great comfort now tolerate the hardships of forest life?
FAQs
Dharma is tested not only by vows and obedience but by compassion and proportionality: Kausalyā implies that a king’s decisions should not impose needless suffering on the innocent and the righteous.
Kausalyā pictures the physical and emotional hardships awaiting Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa, and Sītā in exile, questioning Daśaratha’s ability to bear moral responsibility for that suffering.
The endurance and duty-bound resolve expected of Rāma’s party is implied, while Kausalyā’s maternal compassion is explicit.