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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.60.38

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 60: Traces of Sītā’s abduction. Flowers, footprints, blood and chariot wreckage suggest a struggle, Rāma’s uncertainty turns to threats against the whole world

In the sequence: unable to determine whether she was abducted or killed, he feels that his compassion has been mistaken for weakness and that dharma has failed to protect her

3.60.38

mṛduṃ lokahite yuktaṃ dāntaṃ karuṇavedinam
nirvīrya iti manyante nūnaṃ māṃ tridaśeśvarāḥ

“Because I am gentle, devoted to the good of the world, self-controlled and compassionate, the lords of the gods surely think me devoid of valour.

Words: mṛduṃ — gentle, mild; lokahite — in the welfare of the world; yuktaṃ — engaged, devoted; dāntaṃ — self-controlled; karuṇavedinam — compassionate; nirvīrya — devoid of valour; iti — thus; manyante — they think; nūnaṃ — surely; māṃ — me; tridaśeśvarāḥ — the lords of the gods

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.