Shloka 3.66.17
लक्ष्मणोपदेशः — Lakshmana Consoles Rama on Fate, Fortitude, and Right Action
त्वमेव हि पुरा राम मामेवं बहुशोऽन्वशाः।अनुशिष्याद्धि को नु त्वामपि साक्षाद्बृहस्पतिः।।3.66.17।।
tvam eva hi purā rāma mām evaṃ bahuśo 'nvaśāḥ |
anuśiṣyād dhi ko nu tvām api sākṣād bṛhaspatiḥ || 3.66.17 ||
O Rama, you yourself once instructed me in these very ways, again and again. Who indeed could instruct you now—even Brihaspati himself? Such counsel already dwells within you.
O Rama! you yourself in the past have instructed me many times that way. Who can be your adviser in this matter ? You are indeed like Brihaspati.
Dharma includes fidelity to one’s own learned wisdom: in crisis, one must recollect and live the truths one has taught and affirmed.
Lakshmana appeals to Rama’s past teachings, implying Rama already knows the right path and must now embody it despite grief.
Rama’s authority in wisdom and counsel—Lakshmana frames Rama as comparable to a divine teacher, urging self-consistency.