रामोऽपि परमोदारस्सुमुखस्सुमहायशा: । न चैच्छत्पितुरादेशाद्राज्यं रामो महाबल: ।।1.1.36।।
Meaning
But generous, gracious, and mighty though he was, Rama would not take the throne against his father's express command.
Word-by-word (pada-artha)
| Word | Devanagari | Meaning | Grammatical role |
|---|---|---|---|
| mahābalaḥ ca | महाबलः च | and with great prowess | Compound phrase |
| rāmaḥ | रामः | Rama | Nominative singular — epithet/adjective |
| pituḥ ādeśāt | पितुः आदेशात् | due to (his) father's injunction | Compound phrase |
| na icchat rājyam | न इच्छत् राज्यम् | did not desire the kingdom | Compound phrase |
| rāmaḥ api paramaḥ udāraḥ | रामः अपि परमः उदारः | Rama, though very benevolent | Compound phrase |
| sumukhaḥ api | सुमुखः अपि | gracious also | Compound phrase |
| su mahā yaśaḥ | सु महा यशः | highly famed | Compound phrase |
Scholar commentary
IIT Kanpur English Commentary
Modern synthesis of traditional Sanskrit commentaries (Desiraju Hanumanta Rao & K.M.K. Murthy)
This verse covers Bharata's direct appeal to Rama to return and take the throne. The commentary identifies four distinct reasons the tradition gives for Rama's refusal: he is paramodara, someone willing to set aside his own happiness for another's sake; he has Lakshmana and Sita with him, so his personal needs in the forest are met; ruling a kingdom carries heavy obligations that forest life does not, so there is a kind of relief in it; and above all, he will not go back on his father's word -- the order that sent him into exile for fourteen years stands until it is fulfilled.
1 of 16 traditions have commentary on this shloka. Traditions without a verse-specific commentary here are omitted rather than filled in.
Reference: 1.1.36 · Bāla Kāṇḍa