Kausalya's Lament

Shloka 1 (ayodhya.61.1)

वनं गते धर्मपरे रामे रमयतां वरे। कौसल्या रुदती स्वार्ता भर्तारमिदमब्रवीत् ॥ 61.1 ॥

vanaṃ gate dharmapare rāme ramayatāṃ vare| kausalyā rudatī svārtā bhartāramidamabravīt

When Rama, excellent in virtue and foremost among those who bring joy, had gone away to the forest, Kausalya, grieving for herself, spoke these words, weeping, to her husband.

Shloka 2 (ayodhya.61.2)

यद्यपि त्रिषु लोकेषु प्रथितं ते महद्यशः। सानुक्रोशो वदान्यश्च प्रियवादी च राघवः ॥ 61.2 ॥

yadyapi triṣu lokeṣu prathitaṃ te mahadyaśaḥ| sānukrośo vadānyaśca priyavādī ca rāghavaḥ

"Though your great fame is celebrated in all three worlds - that this Raghava is compassionate, generous, and gentle of speech -

Shloka 3 (ayodhya.61.3)

कथं नरवरश्रेष्ठ पुत्रौ तौ सह सीतया। दुःखितौ सुखसंवृद्धौ वने दुःखं सहिष्यतः ॥ 61.3 ॥

kathaṃ naravaraśreṣṭha putrau tau saha sītayā| duḥkhitau sukhasaṃvṛddhau vane duḥkhaṃ sahiṣyataḥ

how, O best among men, will those two sons, who grew up amid comfort, along with Sita, now bear suffering in the forest, stricken with hardship?"

Shloka 4 (ayodhya.61.4)

सा नूनं तरुणी श्यामा सुकुमारी सुखोचिता। कथमुष्णं च शीतं च मैथिली प्रसहिष्यते ॥ 61.4 ॥

sā nūnaṃ taruṇī śyāmā sukumārī sukhocitā| kathamuṣṇaṃ ca śītaṃ ca maithilī prasahiṣyate

"That young Maithili, dark and lovely, delicate and accustomed only to comfort - how will she truly endure the heat and the cold?"

Shloka 5 (ayodhya.61.5)

भुक्त्वाशनं विशालाक्षी सूपदंशान्वितं शुभम्। वन्यं नैवारमाहारं कथं सीतोपभोक्ष्यते ॥ 61.5 ॥

bhuktvāśanaṃ viśālākṣī sūpadaṃśānvitaṃ śubham| vanyaṃ naivāramāhāraṃ kathaṃ sītopabhokṣyate

"How will the large-eyed Sita, who has always eaten fine food together with curries and delicacies, now eat the forest fare of wild rice?"

Shloka 6 (ayodhya.61.6)

गीतवादित्रनिर्घोषं श्रुत्वा शुभमनिन्दिता। कथं क्रव्यादसिंहानां शब्दं श्रोष्यत्यशोभनम् ॥ 61.6 ॥

gītavāditranirghoṣaṃ śrutvā śubhamaninditā| kathaṃ kravyādasiṃhānāṃ śabdaṃ śroṣyatyaśobhanam

"How will that blameless woman, who has heard only the sweet strains of song and music, now hear the harsh cries of flesh-eating beasts and lions?"

Shloka 7 (ayodhya.61.7)

महेन्द्रध्वजसङ्काशः क्व नु शेते महाभुजः। भुजं परिघसङ्काशमुपधाय महाबलः ॥ 61.7 ॥

mahendradhvajasaṅkāśaḥ kva nu śete mahābhujaḥ| bhujaṃ parighasaṅkāśamupadhāya mahābalaḥ

"Where indeed does that mighty-armed one, resplendent as Mahendra's standard, that man of immense strength, now lie, his arm like an iron bar serving as his pillow?"

Shloka 8 (ayodhya.61.8)

पद्मवर्णं सुकेशान्तं पद्मनिःश्वासमुत्तमम्। कदा द्रक्ष्यामि रामस्य वदनं पुष्करेक्षणम् ॥ 61.8 ॥

padmavarṇaṃ sukeśāntaṃ padmaniḥśvāsamuttamam| kadā drakṣyāmi rāmasya vadanaṃ puṣkarekṣaṇam

"When shall I see again Rama's excellent face - lotus-hued, framed by lovely locks, its breath fragrant as a lotus, its eyes like lotus petals?"

Shloka 9 (ayodhya.61.9)

वज्रसारमयं नूनं हृदयं मे न संशयः। अपश्यन्त्या न तं यद्वै फलतीदं सहस्रधा ॥ 61.9 ॥

vajrasāramayaṃ nūnaṃ hṛdayaṃ me na saṃśayaḥ| apaśyantyā na taṃ yadvai phalatīdaṃ sahasradhā

"There is no doubt that my heart is made wholly of the substance of a thunderbolt, for even without seeing him it does not shatter into a thousand pieces."

Shloka 10 (ayodhya.61.10)

यत्त्वया करुणं कर्म व्यपोह्य मम बान्धवाः। निरस्ताः परिधावन्ति सुखार्हाः कृपणा वने ॥ 61.10 ॥

yattvayā karuṇaṃ karma vyapohya mama bāndhavāḥ| nirastāḥ paridhāvanti sukhārhāḥ kṛpaṇā vane

"It was no act of kindness on your part, that my own kinsfolk, worthy of every comfort, banished by you, now wander about miserably in the forest."

Shloka 11 (ayodhya.61.11)

यदि पञ्चदशे वर्षे राघवः पुनरेष्यति। जह्याद्राज्यं च कोशं च भरतो नोपलक्ष्यते ॥ 61.11 ॥

yadi pañcadaśe varṣe rāghavaḥ punareṣyati| jahyādrājyaṃ ca kośaṃ ca bharato nopalakṣyate

"Even if Raghava should return in the fifteenth year, it is not to be expected that Bharata will give up the kingdom and its treasury."

Shloka 12 (ayodhya.61.12)

भोजयन्ति किल श्राद्धे केचित्स्वानेव बान्धवान्। ततः पश्चात्समीक्षन्ते कृतकार्या द्विजर्षभान् ॥ 61.12 ॥

bhojayanti kila śrāddhe kecitsvāneva bāndhavān| tataḥ paścātsamīkṣante kṛtakāryā dvijarṣabhān

"There are some who, at a memorial feast, feed only their own kinsmen first, and only afterward, once their purpose is served, think to invite the foremost of the twice-born.

Shloka 13 (ayodhya.61.13)

तत्र ये गुणवन्तश्च विद्वांसश्च द्विजातयः। न पश्चात्तेऽभिमन्यन्ते सुधामपि सुरोपमाः ॥ 61.13 ॥

tatra ye guṇavantaśca vidvāṃsaśca dvijātayaḥ| na paścātte'bhimanyante sudhāmapi suropamāḥ

"The virtuous and learned brahmins among them, who are equal to the gods, do not gladly accept it afterward, even were it ambrosia itself."

Shloka 14 (ayodhya.61.14)

ब्राह्मणेष्वपि तृप्तेषु पश्चाद्भोक्तुं द्विजर्षभाः। नाभ्युपैतुमलं प्राज्ञाः शृङ्गच्छेदमिवर्षभाः ॥ 61.14 ॥

brāhmaṇeṣvapi tṛpteṣu paścādbhoktuṃ dvijarṣabhāḥ| nābhyupaitumalaṃ prājñāḥ śṛṅgacchedamivarṣabhāḥ

"Even when other brahmins are already satisfied, the wise among the foremost of the twice-born will not bring themselves to eat afterward - as bulls shrink from the shearing of their horns."

Shloka 15 (ayodhya.61.15)

एवं कनीयसा भ्रात्रा भुक्तं राज्यं विशां पते। भ्राता ज्येष्ठा वरिष्ठाश्च किमर्थं नावमंस्यते ॥ 61.15 ॥

evaṃ kanīyasā bhrātrā bhuktaṃ rājyaṃ viśāṃ pate| bhrātā jyeṣṭhā variṣṭhāśca kimarthaṃ nāvamaṃsyate

"O lord of subjects, once a kingdom has thus been enjoyed by a younger brother, why should the elder and worthier brother not refuse it?"

Shloka 16 (ayodhya.61.16)

न परेणाहृतं भक्ष्यं व्याघ्रः खादितुमिच्छति। एवमेव नरव्याघ्रः परलीढं न मंस्यते ॥ 61.16 ॥

na pareṇāhṛtaṃ bhakṣyaṃ vyāghraḥ khāditumicchati| evameva naravyāghraḥ paralīḍhaṃ na maṃsyate

"A tiger does not wish to eat food that another has already taken; just so, that tiger among men will not accept what another has already enjoyed."

Shloka 17 (ayodhya.61.17)

हविराज्यं पुरोडाशाः कुशा यूपाश्च खादिराः। नैतानि यातयामानि कुर्वन्ति पुनरध्वरे ॥ 61.17 ॥

havirājyaṃ puroḍāśāḥ kuśā yūpāśca khādirāḥ| naitāni yātayāmāni kurvanti punaradhvare

"The oblation, the clarified butter, the sacrificial cakes, the sacred grass, the posts of khadira wood - once their freshness has passed, these are never again put to use in a sacrifice."

Shloka 18 (ayodhya.61.18)

तथा ह्यात्तमिदं राज्यं हृतसारां सुरामिव। नाभिमन्तुमलं रामो नष्टसोममिवाध्वरम् ॥ 61.18 ॥

tathā hyāttamidaṃ rājyaṃ hṛtasārāṃ surāmiva| nābhimantumalaṃ rāmo naṣṭasomamivādhvaram

"So too this kingdom, once taken by another, is like a liquor whose potency is spent; Rama will no more consent to accept it than one would a sacrifice from which the Soma has already been lost."

Shloka 19 (ayodhya.61.19)

नैवंविधमसत्कारं राघवो मर्षयिष्यति। बलवानिव शार्दूलो बालधेरभिमर्शनम् ॥ 61.19 ॥

naivaṃvidhamasatkāraṃ rāghavo marṣayiṣyati| balavāniva śārdūlo bāladherabhimarśanam

"Raghava will not endure such an affront, just as a powerful tiger will not endure even the touching of its own tail."

Shloka 20 (ayodhya.61.20)

नैतस्य सहिता लोका भयं कुर्युर्महामृधे। अधर्मं त्विह धर्मात्मा लोकं धर्मेण योजयेत् ॥ 61.20 ॥

naitasya sahitā lokā bhayaṃ kuryurmahāmṛdhe| adharmaṃ tviha dharmātmā lokaṃ dharmeṇa yojayet

"Not even all the worlds joined together could strike fear into him in the greatest of battles; yet that righteous soul would still meet even this wrong done to him by uniting the world with righteousness."

Shloka 21 (ayodhya.61.21)

नन्वसौ काञ्चनैर्बाणैर्महावीर्यो महाभुजः। युगान्त इव भूतानि सागरानपि निर्दहेत् ॥ 61.21 ॥

nanvasau kāñcanairbāṇairmahāvīryo mahābhujaḥ| yugānta iva bhūtāni sāgarānapi nirdahet

"Indeed this Rama, of great might and mighty arms, could with his golden arrows burn up all beings, and even the oceans, as at the ending of an age."

Shloka 22 (ayodhya.61.22)

स तादृशः सिंहबलो वृषभाक्षो नरर्षभः। स्वयमेव हतः पित्रा जलजेनात्मजो यथा ॥ 61.22 ॥

sa tādṛśaḥ siṃhabalo vṛṣabhākṣo nararṣabhaḥ| svayameva hataḥ pitrā jalajenātmajo yathā

"That foremost of men, of a lion's strength, with eyes like a bull's - has been struck down by his own father, even as a fish might destroy its own offspring."

Shloka 23 (ayodhya.61.23)

द्विजातिचरितो धर्मः शास्त्रदृष्टः सनातनः। यदि ते धर्मनिरते त्वया पुत्रे विवासिते ॥ 61.23 ॥

dvijāticarito dharmaḥ śāstradṛṣṭaḥ sanātanaḥ| yadi te dharmanirate tvayā putre vivāsite

"Is this indeed that eternal duty, seen in the scriptures and practised by the twice-born, that you have sent into exile a son devoted to righteousness?"

Shloka 24 (ayodhya.61.24)

गतिरेवाक्पतिर्नार्या द्वितीया गतिरात्मजः। तृतीया ज्ञातयो राजंश्चतुर्थी नेह विद्यते ॥ 61.24 ॥

gatirevākpatirnāryā dvitīyā gatirātmajaḥ| tṛtīyā jñātayo rājaṃścaturthī neha vidyate

"A husband alone is a woman's foremost refuge, O king; her second refuge is a son, her third her kinsmen - a fourth does not exist here."

Shloka 25 (ayodhya.61.25)

तत्र त्वं चैव मे नास्ति रामश्च वनमाश्रितः। न वनं गन्तुमिच्छामि सर्वथा हि हता त्वया ॥ 61.25 ॥

tatra tvaṃ caiva me nāsti rāmaśca vanamāśritaḥ| na vanaṃ gantumicchāmi sarvathā hi hatā tvayā

"Of these, you no longer exist for me, and Rama has taken refuge in the forest; nor do I wish to go to the forest myself - by you I have been utterly ruined, in every way."

Shloka 26 (ayodhya.61.26)

हतं त्वया राज्यमिदं सराष्ट्रं हतस्तथात्मा सह मन्त्रिभिश्च। हता सपुत्रास्मि हताश्च पौराः सुतश्च भार्या च तव प्रहृष्टौ ॥ 61.26 ॥

hataṃ tvayā rājyamidaṃ sarāṣṭraṃ hatastathātmā saha mantribhiśca| hatā saputrāsmi hatāśca paurāḥ sutaśca bhāryā ca tava prahṛṣṭau

"By you this kingdom, together with its provinces, has been ruined; you yourself, together with your ministers, are ruined; I, together with my son, am ruined, and the citizens too are ruined - only your son and your wife rejoice."

Shloka 27 (ayodhya.61.27)

इमां गिरं दारुणशब्दसंश्रितां निशम्य राजापि मुमोह दुःखितः। ततः स शोकं प्रविवेश पार्थिवः स्वदुष्कृतं चापि पुनस्तदास्मरत् ॥ 61.27 ॥

imāṃ giraṃ dāruṇaśabdasaṃśritāṃ niśamya rājāpi mumoha duḥkhitaḥ| tataḥ sa śokaṃ praviveśa pārthivaḥ svaduṣkṛtaṃ cāpi punastadāsmarat

Hearing this speech, laden with such harsh words, the king too, stricken with grief, fell into a swoon; then that lord of the earth sank into sorrow, and once again called to mind his own past misdeed.