Canto 3 -
Araṇya-kāṇḍa
Chapter 68: Jaṭāyu’s Liberation
Text 3.68.25
सीताहरणजं दुःखं न मे सौम्य तथागतम्।
यथा विनाशो गृध्रस्य मत्कृते च परन्तप॥
sītā-haraṇajaṁ duḥkhaṁ na me saumya tathāgatam
yathā vināśo gṛdhrasya mat-kṛte ca parantapa
sītā-haraṇajam = because of Sītā’s abduction; duḥkham = the distress; na = is not; me = upon Me; saumya = O gentle one; tathā = as the; āgatam = that has come; yathā = as much; vināśaḥ = distress due to the destruction; gṛdhrasya = of [this] vulture; mat-kṛte ca = for My sake; parantapa = O scorcher of Your opponents.
O gentle one, O scorcher of Your opponents, the distress that has come upon Me because of Sītā’s abduction is not as much as the distress due to the destruction of [this] vulture for My sake!1
1 Rāmāyaṇa-bhūṣaṇa: atra vināśa-śabdena tajjaṁ duḥkham ucyate.
[This vulture gave up his life] just for the sake of Lord Rāma.
In the next verse, He states that Jaṭāyu was fit to be cremated according to the sacred rites.