Ramayana of Valmiki

by Hari Prasad Shastri | 1952 | 527,382 words | ISBN-10: 9333119590 | ISBN-13: 9789333119597

This page is entitled “rama continues to lament” and represents Chapter 63 of the Aranya-kanda of the Ramayana (English translation by Hari Prasad Shastri). The Ramayana narrates the legend of Rama and Sita and her abduction by Ravana, the king of Lanka. It contains 24,000 verses divided into seven sections [viz., Aranya-kanda].

Chapter 63 - Rama continues to lament

That son of a king, stricken with sorrow and a prey to anxiety, separated from his dear one, having caused his brother distress, fell into deeper and deeper despondency. Sunk in an abyss of grief, Rama with burning sighs and deep groans addressed Lakshmana, who was overwhelmed with anxiety, in words inspired by his own affliction, saying:—

“There is none in the world I deem more wretched than I; misfortune after misfortune follow each other in uninterrupted succession; it is breaking my heart. Surely, formerly I either designed or executed innumerable evil acts and now their fruit has matured and greater and greater calamities beset me! The loss of my kingdom, separation from my relatives, the parting from my mother, the remembrance of these things adds to the sum of mine unhappiness. Yet those griefs were forgotten as also the privations of mine exile in the forest, but now the disappearance of Sita reawakens their memory as an almost extinct brazier suddenly bursts into flame.

“My youthful and timid spouse has been carried away through the sky by a titan, emitting heart-rending cries unceasingly in her terror, she who formerly was wont to converse so sweetly. Assuredly the breast of my Beloved, sprinkled with saffron of great price, is now soiled with blood and dust, yet I still live! Sita, whose speech was gentle, clear and sweet, whose beauty was enhanced by her curly locks, has grown pale, having fallen a prey to the titans and she has lost her radiance, as the moon in the mouth of Rahu. The neck of my beloved and faithful consort, decorated with a string of pearls, may even now have been severed by the titans in some deserted place, where they are drinking her blood. Deprived of my presence, surrounded by titans in the forest where they dwell and borne away by them, the unfortunate large-eyed Sita will be crying out pitifully like a wounded osprey.

“In this valley Sita of gracious mien, sitting beside me, addressed you with gentle words and sweet smiles, O Lakshmana. Is she perchance wandering on the banks of this most beautiful of rivers, the Godaveri, so loved by her, but no, she was never wont to walk alone! She whose face resembled the lotus, her eyes like their petals, has gone to gather water lilies, but how is this possible, since without me she would never gather flowers?

“Has she entered the forest full of blossoming trees, frequented by flocks of birds of every kind? Alas, no! She was too timid to venture forth alone and would have died of fear! O Sun, witness of all that takes place on earth and of every act, be it good or evil, has my beloved wandered away or has she been abducted? O tell me, lest I die of grief! O Wind, nothing in the world is unknown to you; say, has Sita, the flower of her race, lost her way or been carried off, or is she dead?”

Thus did Rama lament, a victim to grief and despair, and the valiant Saumitri, fixed in his duty, addressed him in words fitting to the occasion saying:—

“O Hero, abandon your grief and take heart! Look on the disappearance of your spouse with detachment and engage with vigour in your search for her. Men of spirit do not allow themselves to be cast down, even in the face of extreme adversity.”

Thus did the highly powerful Lakshmana speak, despite his distress, but Rama, the foremost of the House of Raghu, paid no heed to his words and once again gave himself up to his great sorrow.

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