Shloka 2.9.44
मन्थराप्रेरणा—वरद्वय-स्मरणं च (Manthara’s Provocation and the Recalling of Two Boons)
त्वमायताभ्यां सक्थिभ्यां मन्थरे क्षौमवासिनी।।।।अग्रतो मम गच्छन्ती राजहंसीव राजसे।
tvam āyatābhyāṁ sakthibhyāṁ manthare kṣauma-vāsinī |
agratō mama gacchantī rāja-haṁsīva rājase ||
O Mantharā, clad in fine cloth, when you walk before me with your long thighs, you shine like a royal swan moving ahead.
O Manthara! when clad in silk garment you walk in front of me with your heavythighs, you look like a female royal swan.
The verse demonstrates how praise can become a binding strategy that replaces truth-testing. Dharma demands that relationships and admiration not override moral evaluation.
Kaikeyī’s flattery reaches a peak, portraying Mantharā as admirable and authoritative—cementing the counselor’s hold over her.
The implied virtue is independence of judgment (svatantra-viveka): not surrendering one’s decision-making to a persuasive companion.