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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.48.10

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 48: Jaṭāyu confronts Rāvaṇa. The aged vulture condemns the abduction, demands Sītā’s release and challenges the armed ruler despite his own disadvantage

In the sequence: he reminds Rāvaṇa that subjects follow their King's example and that power cannot endure through wrongdoing

3.48.10

pāpasvabhāvaś capalaḥ kathaṃ tvaṃ rakṣasāṃ vara
aiśvaryam abhisaṃprāpto vimānam iva duṣkṛtī

'O best of rākṣasas, evil-natured and fickle as you are, how have you come by such sovereignty — like some sinner who has gained a celestial car he never earned?'

Words: pāpasvabhāvaś — of evil nature; capalaḥ — fickle, unsteady; kathaṃ — how; tvaṃ — you; rakṣasāṃ — of the rākṣasas; vara — O best; aiśvaryam — sovereignty, lordship; abhisaṃprāpto — have attained; vimānam — a celestial car; iva — like; duṣkṛtī — an evildoer

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki. 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.