Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 8, Shloka 4
शोचामि दुर्मतित्वं ते का हि प्राज्ञा प्रहर्षयेत्।अरेस्सपत्नीपुत्रस्य वृद्धिं मृत्योरिवागताम्।।2.8.4।।
śocāmi durmatitvaṃ te kā hi prājñā praharṣayet |
areḥ sapatnīputrasya vṛddhiṃ mṛtyor ivāgatām || 2.8.4 ||
I grieve over your misguided thinking. What wise woman would rejoice at the rise of the son of a co-wife—an enemy—when that rise comes like the approach of death?
Your son, that young Bharata, is accustomed to comforts. He is a born enemy of Rama. How will he, deprived of all wealth, live under the control of Rama?
FAQs
The verse frames jealousy toward a co-wife’s child as self-destructive, implying a dharmic warning: envy and factionalism in family life corrode right judgment and invite ruin.
Mantharā begins persuading Kaikeyī that Rāma’s impending rise threatens her interests, urging suspicion toward Kausalyā’s son.
Negatively, it highlights the need for viveka (discernment). A ‘wise’ person should not celebrate or fuel hostility within the royal household.