Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 59, Shloka 24
एकोनषष्ठितमः सर्गः (Sarga 59): सुमन्त्रवाक्यं, अयोध्याविषादः, दाशरथिशोकसागरः
भवितव्यतया नूनमिदं वा व्यसनं महत्।कुलस्यास्य विनाशाय प्राप्तं सूत यदृच्छया।।2.59.24।।
bhavitavyatayā nūnam idaṃ vā vyasanaṃ mahat | kulasyāsya vināśāya prāptaṃ sūta yadṛcchayā || 2.59.24 ||
车夫啊，想必是命运之力使这场大灾厄降临；仿佛偶然来到，只为毁灭此一族系。
Surely it is destiny and this calamity has befallen for the wilful destruction of the (entire) race, O charioteer!
FAQs
The verse reflects acceptance of events as governed by daiva (destiny) while implying the grave ethical weight of actions that can endanger a royal lineage; it frames suffering within a dharmic worldview of inevitability and consequence.
Daśaratha, overwhelmed after Rāma’s departure for exile, speaks to his charioteer Sumantra, interpreting the crisis as an unavoidable calamity threatening the dynasty.
Daśaratha’s anguished honesty and reflective awareness—he tries to make moral sense of catastrophe within the traditional framework of destiny and duty.