Shloka 2.75.12

अयोध्याकाण्डे पञ्चसप्ततितमः सर्गः (Sarga 75: Bharata and Kausalya—Reproach, Oaths, and Reconciliation)

Devanagari script

प्रस्थाप्य चीरवसनं पुत्रं मे वनवासिनम्।कैकेयी कं गुणं तत्र पश्यति क्रूरदर्शिनी।।।।

Transliteration

prasthāpya cīravasanaṃ putraṃ me vanavāsinam |

kaikeyī kaṃ guṇaṃ tatra paśyati krūradarśinī ||

Translation

Having sent my son—clad in bark garments—to dwell in the forest, what ‘benefit’ did Kaikeyī, cruel of gaze, imagine there?

Context

What advantage did cruel Kaikeyi visualize in sending away my son to dwell in the forest wearing robes of bark?

Characters & Entities

• Kauśalyā
• Kaikeyī
• Rāma (implied as ‘my son’)
• Vana (forest)
• Cīra (bark garments)

FAQs

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

Dharma rejects cruelty disguised as policy: causing suffering to the righteous for political gain is shown as irrational and morally empty.

What is the narrative situation?

Kauśalyā questions the motive and ‘profit’ behind Kaikeyī’s decision to send Rāma into forest life.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Kauśalyā’s protective maternal dharma and her insistence that righteous persons should not be harmed for ambition.