Shloka 2.11.29
कैकेयीवरप्रार्थना — Kaikeyi Demands the Two Boons
स राजराजः भव सत्यसङ्गरःकुलं च शीलं च हि रक्ष जन्म च।परत्रवासे हि वदन्त्यनुत्तमंतपोधनास्सत्यवचो हितं नृणाम्।।।।
āvalipte na jānāsi tvattaḥ priyataro mama | manujo manujavyāghrād rāmād anyo na vidyate ||
O proud lady, do you not know? To me no woman is dearer than you; and among men there is none other than Rāma, the tiger among men.
O king of kings, by being true to your vow, protect your race, character and lineage. Those sages whose ascetism is their wealth maintain that there is no merit superior to truthfulness which can confer man a place in the other world.ityārṣē śrīmadrāmāyaṇē vālmīkīya ādikāvyē ayōdhyākāṇḍē ēkādaśassargaḥ৷৷Thus ends the eleventh sarga of Ayodhyakanda of the holy Ramayana, the first epic composed by sage Valmiki.
It underscores the king’s declared hierarchy of love and loyalty: marital affection toward Kaikeyī and principled esteem for Rāma as the foremost man—setting the stage for a later dharmic conflict when these loyalties collide.
Daśaratha reassures Kaikeyī of her special place and simultaneously extols Rāma, before hearing her demand.
Rāma’s excellence is emphasized through the epithet manujavyāghra, implying valor, nobility, and leadership.