Shloka 2.9.65
मन्थराप्रेरणा—वरद्वय-स्मरणं च (Manthara’s Provocation and the Recalling of Two Boons)
अथैतदुक्त्वा वचनं सुदारुणंनिधाय सर्वाभरणानि भामिनी।असंवृतामास्तरणेन मेदिनींतदाऽधिशिश्ये पतितेव किन्नरी।।।।
athaitad uktvā vacanaṃ sudāruṇaṃ nidhāya sarvābharaṇāni bhāminī |
asaṃvṛtām āstaraṇena medinīṃ tadā’dhiśiśye patiteva kinnarī ||
After speaking those most dreadful words, the lovely Kaikeyī set aside all her ornaments and then lay down upon the bare earth, with the covering removed—like a fallen kinnarī.
Saying these ruthless words, that lovely Kaikeyi cast off all her ornaments like afallen 'kinnara' woman, and lay down on the floor with the carpet removed.
It is a deliberate display of distress and protest meant to pressure the king; ethically, it signals a turn from calm, truthful persuasion toward manipulative conduct that disrupts righteous order (dharma) in the household and kingdom.
The verse follows harsh speech that sets the stage for demanding boons; the episode tests whether truthfulness will be upheld as a moral commitment (keeping one’s given word) even when the request arises from emotionally coercive behavior.