Valmiki Ramayana 2.22.10: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 22, Shloka 10
अभिषेक-निवृत्ति-उपदेशः
Withdrawal of the Coronation: Rama’s Counsel to Lakshmana
Spoken by Rama to LakṣmaṇaSetting: Ayodhyā (implied, within royal precincts)
तस्याऽपि हि भवेदस्मिन्कर्मण्यप्रतिसंहृते ।
सत्यं नेति मनस्तापस्तस्य तापस्तपेच्च माम् ॥१०॥
tasyāpi hi bhaved asmin karmaṇy apratisaṃhṛte |
satyaṃ neti manastāpas tasya tāpas tapec ca mām ||10||
Denn wenn diese Handlung — die Vorbereitungen zu meiner Weihe — nicht zurückgenommen wird, wird auch mein Vater vom Schmerz versengt werden: „Meine Wahrheit ist nicht erfüllt“, und eben diese Qual wird auch mich bedrängen.
Sandhi Notes
- Sandhi resolution: तस्याऽपि → तस्य + अपि
- भवेदस्मिन् → भवेत् + अस्मिन् (द्/त्-सन्धिः)
- कर्मण्यप्रतिसंहृते → कर्मणि + अप्रतिसंहृते (यण्/अनुस्वार-सम्बन्धः)
- सत्यं नेति → सत्यम् + न + इति (म् + न → ं न; then n + i → ne by external sandhi)
- मनस्तापस्तस्य → मनस्तापः + तस्य (विसर्ग-सन्धिः: ः + त → स् + त)
- तापस्तपेच्च → तापः + तपेत् + च (विसर्ग-सन्धिः: ः + त → स् + त; त् + च → च्च)
If the preparations for the consecration are not withdrawn, my father will suffer mental agony for the fear that his word has not come true and his agony will torment me.
The teaching
Protecting another’s satya and relieving their inner torment can outweigh one’s own immediate gain; dharma is measured by the reduction of adharma-born suffering.
Duties in tension
- Personal kingship/abhiṣeka vs. preserving father’s satya (vow)
- Desire for rightful succession vs. avoidance of causing parental anguish
- Ethical theme
- Satya-dharma; filial duty (pitṛ-ṛṇa)
- How it resolves
- Renunciation/withdrawal from claim to protect satya-dharma
For your practice
Contemplation on satya and compassion: practice of truthful intention and empathy as tapas; using Rama’s example for vrata-steadfastness.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Karuna (compassion), with Shanta (peace)
- Mood
- Filial anguish, vow-bound, heavy-hearted
Themes
- Satya
- Dharma
- Filial duty
- Compassion
- Ethics
- Itihasa
The 'burning' (tāpa) from violated satya mirrors adhyātmika duḥkha arising from saṅkalpa-bhaṅga; Rama chooses alignment with dharma to quiet the mind (antaḥkaraṇa-śuddhi).
Chāndogya emphasis on satya as the foundation ("satyam eva jayate" sentiment later formalized); also the Upaniṣadic valuation of satya as a purifier of the self.
- Rama and Dasharatha
- Son-father; filial concern for father's satya (compassionate)
- Rama and Rama
- Self-restraint; empathy as self-discipline (solemn)
- Dasharatha and Satya
- King bound by vow; satya-sankalpa (anxious)
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.18-2.21 (Rama’s reasoning on vows and exile); Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.20 (satya and obedience as dharma)
Mahābhārata: Śānti/Anuśāsana themes on satya as highest dharma; Rāmacaritamānasa: Ayodhyākāṇḍa—Rama’s concern for Daśaratha’s vow
Ayodhyākāṇḍa: Daśaratha’s boons to Kaikeyī (cause of satya-sankata)
Anuṣṭup (śloka)
Solemn
Mandra-madhyama, with gentle kampita on 'satyam' and 'tāpa'
FAQs
The verse foregrounds Satya as dharma: Rāma prioritizes the integrity of his father’s pledged word, valuing truthfulness over personal gain.
Rāma explains why the coronation preparations must be stopped: continuing them would intensify Daśaratha’s anguish about keeping his promise.
Rāma’s empathy and filial responsibility—he feels his father’s moral pain as his own.
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