batch.motif.hindu-ramayana-griffith-gutenberg-l20788-l20845
---
record_id: batch.motif.hindu-ramayana-griffith-gutenberg-l20788-l20845
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
passage_locator:
label: Canto LXII. Dasaratha Consoled. / Canto LXVI. The Embalming. / Canto LXVII.
The Praise Of Kings. / Canto LXVIII. The Envoys.; lines 20788-20845
start: '20788'
end: '20845'
translation: The Ramayan of Valmiki
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Surabhi tells Indra that she mourns two children worn down by hard labor
and goading. The scene is used to reflect on a mother's grief, especially Kauśalyá
deprived of Ráma. An unnamed speaker condemns a queen, promises rites for his
brother and father, vows to bring Ráma back to Ayodhyá as rightful king, and says
he will go to the forest. He then falls to the earth in anger, compared to a goaded
elephant and a maimed serpent.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Indra, described as the god who rules the skies, speaks before Surabhí answers
him.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Surabhí says she does not blame Indra or the divine lords for the suffering
she sees.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: Surabhí mourns two children who are faint with toil, laboring in stubborn
soil under the sun and goaded by a cruel hind.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:4
text: Surabhí says the suffering children sprang from her body and that no one is
as dear to a mother as her son.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:5
text: Indra sees Surabhí weep, and her tears fall on him with a celestial scent.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:6
text: The passage states that Kauśalyá has been deprived of Ráma, her only son,
and is now childless.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: An unnamed speaker addresses a queen, accusing her of a crime and saying she
will suffer here and hereafter.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:8
text: The speaker says he will perform the rites required for his brother and his
sire.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:9
text: The speaker says he will bring the long-armed chief, the lord and king, back
to Ayodhyá and will himself go to the wood where hermit saints dwell.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:10
text: The speaker tells the queen to retire to Daṇḍak wood, cast her body into fire,
or bind a rope around her neck.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:11
text: The speaker says Ráma is lord of true valor and has a right to the earth.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:12
text: At the end of the passage, the speaker falls to earth in anger, compared to
an elephant under the driver's hook and a maimed serpent.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Indra
description: The god who rules the skies, called supremely wise and addressed by
Surabhí.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Surabhí
description: A gentle, eloquent mother whose offspring are numerous and who weeps
over two suffering children.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Two children of Surabhí
description: Children of Surabhí, faint with toil, laboring in stubborn soil and
goaded by a cruel hind.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Cruel hind
description: The person goading Surabhí's children and showing no pity.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Kauśalyá
description: A mother deprived of Ráma, her only son, and described as childless.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Ráma
description: Kauśalyá's son; called lord of true valor and associated with rightful
rule of the earth.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Unnamed speaker
description: A figure who condemns the queen, promises rites for his brother and
father, vows to bring the king back to Ayodhyá, and falls to earth in anger.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Queen
description: The addressed queen accused by the speaker of a hideous crime.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Hermit saints
description: Dwellers in the wood to which the speaker says he will go.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
roles:
- id: role:1
label: divine interlocutor
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Indra is named as the sky-ruling god whom Surabhí addresses.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: mourning mother
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Surabhí weeps for children who sprang from her body and says no one is like
a son to a mother.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: suffering offspring
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: They are described as faint with toil, laboring under the sun, and goaded.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:4
label: cruel driver
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The hind goads the children and is described as having no pity.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:5
label: bereaved mother
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Kauśalyá is described as deprived of her only son Ráma and rendered childless.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:6
label: rightful royal figure
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Ráma is called a lord of true valor who has a right to the earth.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:7
label: accusing and vow-making speaker
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: The speaker condemns the queen, promises rites, vows to restore the king,
and declares he will go to the forest.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: role:8
label: accused queen
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: The speaker addresses her as queen and accuses her of a hideous crime.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: role:9
label: forest ascetics
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: The passage mentions hermit saints dwelling in the wood.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: maternal tears
literal_form: Tears from Surabhí's eyes that bedew Indra's frame and carry celestial
scent.
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: fire
literal_form: Fire named as a possible destination for the queen's body.
associated_figures:
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:3
label: rope around the neck
literal_form: A rope the speaker tells the queen she may bind around her neck.
associated_figures:
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:4
label: forest dwelling
literal_form: Daṇḍak wood and the wood where hermit saints dwell.
associated_figures:
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: sym:5
label: maimed serpent simile
literal_form: The speaker pants like a maimed serpent after falling to earth in
rage.
associated_figures:
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs:
- serpent
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Surabhí explains her grief to Indra
summary: Surabhí tells Indra that the divine lords are not at fault, but that she
mourns two children suffering under labor, sun, and goading.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Indra witnesses a mother's tears
summary: Indra sees Surabhí weeping; the passage emphasizes the depth of maternal
love and compares it to Kauśalyá's loss of Ráma.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:5
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: Condemnation of the queen and vow of restoration
summary: The speaker condemns the queen, promises rites for his brother and father,
says he will bring the king back to Ayodhyá, and will go to the forest himself.
figure_refs:
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:9
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: scene:4
label: Threats of exile or self-destruction
summary: The speaker tells the queen to retire to Daṇḍak wood, enter fire, or hang
herself with a rope, saying there is no other refuge.
figure_refs:
- fig:7
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:5
label: Fall in rage
summary: The speaker, inflamed with rage, falls to the earth and is compared to
a goaded elephant and a maimed serpent.
figure_refs:
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: mother mourning suffering or absent son
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_parent_child
basis: Surabhí mourns children born from her body, and the passage explicitly generalizes
that no one is like a son to a mother; it then applies this to Kauśalyá bereft
of Ráma.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage includes divine figures, but the core pattern is maternal
grief; the taxonomy reference is approximate because the available list lacks
a precise 'maternal lament' category.
- id: motif:2
label: rightful king to be restored
taxonomy_refs:
- royal_legitimacy
basis: The speaker vows to bring the long-armed lord and king back to Ayodhyá and
says Ráma has a right to the earth.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: The passage does not narrate the actual restoration, only the vow and
assertion of right.
- id: motif:3
label: substitutionary withdrawal to the forest
taxonomy_refs:
- departure
basis: The speaker says he will bring the king back to Ayodhyá and will himself
go to the wood where hermit saints dwell.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage states an intention to depart, not the completed departure.
- id: motif:4
label: exile or death as punishment for crime
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The speaker accuses the queen of a hideous crime and tells her to retire
to Daṇḍak wood, enter fire, or hang herself.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: This is a speech of condemnation; the passage does not state that the
punishment occurs.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 20788-20803
quote_or_summary: Indra is named; Surabhí replies that he and the divine lords are
not at fault, then mourns two children born from her body who toil in stubborn
soil, suffer under the sun, and are goaded by a cruel hind.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 20804-20813
quote_or_summary: Indra sees Surabhí weeping; her tears bedew him with celestial
scent, and the passage emphasizes that a son is incomparable in a mother's eyes.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 20814-20821
quote_or_summary: The passage compares Surabhí's grief to Kauśalyá's sorrow, saying
she is deprived of her only son Ráma and rendered childless by the queen's crime.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 20822-20829
quote_or_summary: The speaker says he will honor the rites due to his brother and
father, bring the long-armed lord and king back to Ayodhyá, and go himself to
the forest where hermit saints dwell.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 20830-20837
quote_or_summary: The speaker calls the queen a sinner in deed and thought, says
he cannot bear her crime, and tells her to go to Daṇḍak wood, enter fire, or bind
a rope around her neck.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 20838-20841
quote_or_summary: The speaker says that when Ráma, lord of true valor, has gained
the earth that is his right, the speaker will be free from duty's debt and forget
his vanished sin.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 20842-20845
quote_or_summary: The speaker is compared to an elephant forced to endure the driver's
hook and to a maimed serpent, then falls to earth inflamed with rage.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/ramayana-griffith.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: medium
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: The passage includes an embedded animal/divine exemplum and a later royal-family
speech; the speaker and queen are not named in the provided excerpt, so they are
kept as unnamed figures.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
No external identifications were used beyond the names and relationships stated in the supplied passage.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:hindu-ramayana-griffith-gutenberg__l20788-l20845
passage_sha256=5059bb1686133c772843613d5573fdfc667c703e8e12bb623fb4896329aff243