Shloka 2.11.7

कैकेयीवरप्रार्थना — Kaikeyi Demands the Two Boons

Devanagari script

यं मुहूर्तमपश्यंस्तु न जीवेयमहं ध्रुवम्।तेन रामेण कैकेयि शपे ते वचनक्रियाम्।।।।

Transliteration

bharato bhajatām adya yauvarājyam akaṇṭakam | eṣa me paramaḥ kāmo dattam eva varaṁ vṛṇe | adya caiva hi paśyeyaṁ prayāntaṁ rāghavaṁ vanam ||

Translation

Let Bharata take up the office of prince-regent today, without any rival to obstruct him. This is my highest desire; I claim a boon already granted. And today itself, let me see Rāghava departing for the forest.

Context

O Kaikeyi, in the name of Rama without seeing whom I, for sure, cannot live a momment, I swear I will fulfil your desire.

Characters & Entities

• Kaikeyī
• Daśaratha
• Bharata
• Rāghava (Rāma)
• Forest (vana)

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

It tests satya-dharma: a boon once granted becomes a moral bond. The verse frames a conflict between the king’s truth-keeping and the justice of the demand imposed through that bond.

What is the narrative situation?

Kaikeyī states her first boon explicitly: Bharata’s installation as prince-regent, and Rāma’s immediate departure into forest-exile.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Daśaratha’s expected virtue—truthfulness to his pledged boon—is the focal pressure point, even as the request itself appears adharma-oriented toward Rāma.