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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.98.20

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 98: Bharata’s appeal and Rāma’s answer. Bharata asks him to restore the Kingdom, Rāma teaches the inevitability of loss, separation and death

In the sequence: each day diminishes life, even when people greet the passing days and seasons with joy

2.98.20

ātmānam anuśoca tvaṃ kim anyam anuśocasi
āyus te hīyate yasya sthitasya ca gatasya ca

Grieve for yourself; why do you grieve for another? Your own life-span dwindles, whether you stay still or go about.

Words: ātmānam — yourself; anuśoca — grieve for; tvaṃ — you; kim anyam — why another; anuśocasi — do you grieve for; āyus te — your life-span; hīyate — dwindles, is diminished; yasya — of whom (you); sthitasya ca gatasya ca — whether staying or going

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki, the ādikavi of the ādikāvya: the first poet of the first poem. Sanskrit: The Vālmīki-Rāmāyaṇa: Critical Edition, Oriental Institute, Baroda, 1960–1975 (gen. eds. G. H. Bhatt, U. P. Shah); IAST from GRETIL (Göttingen). Translation and word glosses: Claude Opus 4.6–4.7; summaries and sequences: ChatGPT Astra (machine-made). Numbering follows the Critical Edition, not the vulgate (e.g. Gita Press, valmikiramayan.net), so sarga and verse numbers can differ from those editions.