Shloka 2.8.26

मन्थराकैकेयीसंवादः — Mantharā’s Counsel to Kaikeyī (Ayodhyā’s Succession Alarm)

Devanagari script

साऽहं त्वदर्थे सम्प्राप्ता त्वं तु मां नावबुद्ध्यसे।सपत्नि वृद्धौ या मे त्वं प्रदेयं दातुमिच्छसि।।2.8.26।।

Transliteration

sā ’haṃ tvadarthe samprāptā tvaṃ tu māṃ nāvabuddhyase |

sapatnī-vṛddhau yā me tvaṃ pradeyaṃ dātum icchasi ||2.8.26||

Translation

I have come here for your sake, yet you do not understand me. When your co-wife prospers, you wish to give me a gift as though it were some ‘due’ owed to me.

Context

I am here to serve your interest. Nevertheless you do not understand me and you wish to confer gifts on me on the occasion of the prosperity of your co-wife.

Characters & Entities

• Mantharā
• Kaikeyī
• sapatnī (co-wife/rival queen—implicitly Kausalyā)

FAQs

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

The verse highlights how dharma can be obscured when one’s judgment is clouded by rivalry and resentment; Mantharā frames a moral claim (“what is due to me”) to push Kaikeyī toward adharmic suspicion.

What is the narrative situation?

Mantharā is provoking Kaikeyī after hearing auspicious news for Rāma; she rebukes Kaikeyī for reacting with misplaced joy and for offering her gifts instead of recognizing the political ‘threat’ Mantharā alleges.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Negatively, the verse emphasizes the absence of viveka (discernment) and the danger of envy; it implicitly values clear-sightedness and truthful counsel.