Canto 3 -
Araṇya-kāṇḍa
Chapter 67: Rāma Meets Jaṭāyu
Text 3.67.15
यामोषधिमिवायुष्मन्नन्वेषसि महावने।
सा देवी मम च प्राणा रावणेनोभयं हृतम्॥
yām oṣadhim ivāyuṣmann anveṣasi mahā-vane
sā devī mama ca prāṇā rāvaṇenobhayaṁ hṛtam
yām = whom; oṣadhim = [one searching] for a medicinal herb; iva = like; āyuṣman = O long-living one; anveṣasi = You search for; mahā-vane = in [this] great forest; sā = the; devī = goddess; mama = my; ca = and; prāṇāḥ = life-airs; rāvaṇena = by Rāvaṇa; ubhayam = both; hṛtam = have been taken away.
O long-living one, both the goddess, whom You search for in [this] great forest like [one searching] for a medicinal herb, and my life-airs have been taken away by Rāvaṇa!
1 Jaṭāyu’s fear was simply due to his affection for Lord Rāmacandra.
Jaṭāyu intends to say, “After almost killing me, Rāvaṇa abducted Sītā.”
Though Jaṭāyu knows the strength of Lord Rāma because of His slaughter of Khara and so on, he prayed for Śrī Rāma’s longevity by [using the word] āyuṣman (“O long-living one”). This was due to Jaṭāyu’s fear which was unwarranted at this moment.1