Shloka 2.8.3
मन्थराकैकेयीसंवादः — Mantharā’s Counsel to Kaikeyī (Ayodhyā’s Succession Alarm)
मनसा प्रहसामि त्वां देवि दुःखार्दिता सती।यच्छोचितव्ये हृष्टाऽसि प्राप्येदं व्यसनं महत्।।2.8.3।।
manasā prahasāmi tvāṃ devi duḥkhārditā satī |
yac chocitavye hṛṣṭā ’si prāpya idaṃ vyasanaṃ mahat ||2.8.3||
O Queen, though I am stricken with sorrow, I laugh at you within: for when you ought to grieve, you rejoice, even though this great calamity has come upon you.
O queen! at a time when this great misfortune has befallen you, you are rejoicinginstead of feeling miserable. I am indeed laughing at you at heart.
It underscores the need for right discernment (viveka) in moral life: rejoicing at what is framed as another’s success can be portrayed as dangerous when driven by rivalry; dharma requires truthful appraisal rather than reactive emotion.
At the outset of her provocation, Mantharā rebukes Kaikeyī for being pleased at news that favors Rāma, insisting it is actually a calamity for Kaikeyī’s interests.
The verse implicitly calls for prudence and discernment; it also displays Mantharā’s skill in psychological pressure rather than virtue.