Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 108, Shloka 18
जाबाल्युपदेशः
Jabali’s Pragmatic Counsel to Rama
सतां बुद्धिं पुरस्कृत्य सर्वलोकनिदर्शिनीम्।राज्यं त्वं प्रतिगृह्णीष्व भरतेन प्रसादितः।।।।
satāṁ buddhiṁ puraskṛtya sarvalokanidarśinīm |
rājyaṁ tvaṁ pratigṛhṇīṣva bharatena prasāditaḥ ||
Honorant le jugement des sages et des justes—modèle pour tous les mondes—reçois le royaume, satisfait de l’offrande de Bharata.
A man who goes from one village to another takes rest somewhere on the way and the next day leaves the place and proceeds on his journey. Similarly, father, mother, home and wealth are restingplaces to a man. The wise do not get attached to them, O descendant the Kakutsthas
FAQs
It frames dharma as alignment with the counsel of the wise and with public exemplarity (maryādā): the ruler’s choice becomes a model for society.
At the end of Sarga 108, Bharata urges Rāma to accept kingship, presenting it as the wise and socially exemplary course.
Respect for wise counsel and commitment to public duty—acting in a way that guides the wider world.