Shloka 3.43.17
मायामृगदर्शनम् (The Vision of the Illusory Deer)
भरतस्यार्यपुत्रस्य श्वश्रूणां मम च प्रभो।मृगरूपमिदं व्यक्तं विस्मयं जनयिष्यति।।।।
bharatasyāryaputrasya śvaśrūṇāṁ mama ca prabho | mṛgarūpam idaṁ vyaktaṁ vismayaṁ janayiṣyati ||
O lord, this deer-form—so unmistakably wondrous—will arouse amazement in Bharata, in the royal mothers, in you, and in me as well.
O king! this deer will create amazement in Bharata, in mothers-in-law, in you and in me as well.
It shows how social approval and family admiration can become motives that steer choices. Dharma requires acting from right principle, not merely from the desire to impress or delight others.
Sītā persuades Rāma by imagining the deer as a spectacle that will amaze Bharata and the elder queens when they return.
Sītā’s concern for shared family joy and harmony is present, though it also reveals susceptibility to fascination.