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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.49.26

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 49: Jaṭāyu’s battle and fall. He wrecks Rāvaṇa’s chariot and renews the attack, Rāvaṇa cuts his wings, feet and flanks, Sītā embraces him

In the sequence: Jaṭāyu follows, condemns the abduction as a thief's act, warns that it will destroy Rāvaṇa and his people, and again demands a fight

3.49.26

paretakāle puruṣo yat karma pratipadyate
vināśāyātmano 'dharmyaṃ pratipanno 'si karma tat

The unrighteous deed that a man takes up at his death-hour, to his own destruction — that very deed you have now undertaken.

Words: paretakāle — at the time of death; puruṣo — a man; yat — which; karma — deed; pratipadyate — undertakes; vināśāyātmano — for one's own destruction; 'dharmyaṃ — unrighteous; pratipanno — have undertaken; 'si — you are; karma — deed; tat — that

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.