Shloka 3.37.5
मारीचोपदेशः — Maricha’s Counsel to Ravana (On Rama’s Dharma and the Peril of Abduction)
अपि ते जीवितान्ताय नोत्पन्ना जनकात्मजा।अपि सीतानिमित्तं च न भवेद्व्यसनं मम।।।।
na ca pitrā parityakto nāmaryādaḥ kathañcana |
na lubdho na ca duśśīlo na ca kṣatriyapāṃsanaḥ ||
na ca dharmaguṇair hīnaḥ kausalyānandavardhanaḥ |
na tīkṣṇo na ca bhūtānāṃ sarveṣām ahite rataḥ ||
Rāma, who increases Kausalyā’s joy, has not been cast off by his father, nor has he ever transgressed the bounds of propriety. He is neither greedy nor of corrupt conduct, nor a disgrace to the kṣatriyas. He is not lacking in dharma and virtue; he is not cruel, nor devoted to the harm of any being.
Hope the daughter of Janaka is not born to put an end to your life. Hope I will not face any disaster on account of Sita.
Dharma is defined as maryādā (moral boundaries), compassion toward all beings, and freedom from greed and vice—qualities embodied by Rama.
Mārīca describes Rama’s character to dissuade Rāvaṇa from provoking a righteous, disciplined hero who does not act from cruelty but from dharma.
Rama’s maryādā, compassion, and moral integrity—he is portrayed as the kṣatriya ideal who harms none without righteous cause.