At Operation Sindoor press briefing, Ramcharitmanas and Rashmirathi quoted: The lines, their significance

Indian Express

12-05-2025

India targetted only terrorists and their support infrastructure and not the Pakistan military in Operation Sindoor, but the Pakistani Armed Forces chose to intervene and bat for the terrorists, Director General of Air Operations, Air Marshal AK Bharti, said at a Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) press briefing on Monday (May 12).
Bharti was accompanied by his counterparts Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai of the Army and Vice Admiral AN Pramod of the Navy.
Interestingly, before the officers started speaking, the briefing began with a video playing on the screen and some lines by poet Ramdhari Singh Dinkar being recited. Later, when the officers were taking questions from the press, they were asked about the choice of these lines, and Air Marshal Bharti responded by quoting a chaupai (a quatrain) from the Ramcharitmanas to encapsulate the message being sent to Pakistan.
What exactly are these lines quoted, and what is the significance of choosing them? We explain.
The lines played at the briefing were 'Jab naash manuj par chhata hai, pehle vivek mar jaata hai (when destruction awaits, common sense is the first to die)'… 'Hit vachan nahin tune maana, maitri ka mool na pehchana/Tou le main bhi ab jaata hun, antim sankalp sunata hun/Yachna nahin ab rann hoga, jeewan jay ya ki maran hoga (You did not listen to peace overtures, did not appreciate the value of friendship/ So I am leaving, and here's my final resolve/No talks, now there will be combat, the triumph of life, or the ultimate bloodshed). '
The lines have been taken from Dinkar's epic poem Rashmirathi — a retelling of the Mahabharata with Karna as the protagonist — although they are not in the exact order that they occur in the poem.
This passage comes in a chapter called 'Krishna ki chetavani' (Krishna's warning). When war between the Kauravas and the Pandavas is imminent, Lord Krishna comes to the Kaurava prince Duryodhan to make one last attempt at peace. He tells him that his cousins the Pandavas are willing to forgo their right to the kingdom of Hastinapur, if Duryodhan would just give them five villages and leave them in peace.
Duryodhan, blinded by pride and his hatred for the Pandavas, not just repudiates the proposal, but tries to arrest Krishna. The Lord then shows him his true, grand and fearful form, and gives him the warning that an annihilating war is coming for him.
The passage makes the point that the Pandavas tried hard to stay on the path of non-violence and tolerance. To avoid bloodshed and the prospect of kin killing kin, they attempted peace talks and even agreed to give up their rightful claims. However, when all efforts were spurned, they fought the inevitable war, with great valour and craft, and defeated the Kauravas.
Because of the message they give, the lines were an interesting choice to be played before a press briefing about operations against Pakistan.
The Ramcharitmanas reference
After the briefing, a journalist asked Air Marshal Bharti about the choice of the poem. He replied, 'Main bas aapko Ramcharitmanas ki ek kuch pankti yaad dilaoonga, aap samajh jaayenge. Toh yaad kijiye woh pankti jo hai: 'Binay na maane jaladhi jad, bhay teen din beet/Bole Ram sakop tab, Bhay bin hoye na preet'. Toh samajhdar ke liye ishaara hi kaafi hai (I would just like to remind you of a few lines from the Ramcharitmanas, and you will understand. [The quatrain]. So, for the wise, an indication is enough.'
The chaupai means, 'The stubborn ocean would not accede to requests, three days had passed/Then an angry Ram said, there is no love without fear.'
The Ramcharitmanas is Tulsidas's rendition of the Ramayana. These lines come when Lord Ram, on his way to Lanka, is asking the ocean to allow their passage. For three days, Lord Ram makes polite requests, even though he had an arrow which, if shot, would dry up the ocean. When the ocean refuses to comply, an angry Ram draws up his bow and arrow. The ocean then appears, begs him for forgiveness, and allows Ram's army to pass through.
The line 'bhay bin hou na preet' means that for love or bonhomie to exist, an element of deterrence is necessary, so that the other party thinks twice before offending or crossing you. A weak person, someone no one fears, may not get a lot of respect or equal treatment in his relationships.
Interestingly, Dinkar has also written about this incident. His version goes, 'Sach poocho, to shar mein hi/Basti hai deepti vinay ki/Sandhi-vachan sampoojya usi ka/Jis mein shakti vijay ki.' This means, 'Verily, it is in the arrow that the glow of humility lies, peace talks are respected only from those who have the power to win.'
The more famous lines from this passage, however, are, 'Kshama shobhti us bhujang ko jiske paas garal ho/Usko kya jo dantheen, vishrahit, vineet, saral ho (forgiveness befits the snake which has venom, not one that is defanged, non-venomous, meek and harmless).'