Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 14, Shloka 10
सत्यपाशः
Kaikeyi’s Demand and the Noose of the King’s Promise
समयं च ममार्येमं यदि त्वं न करिष्यसि।अग्रतस्ते परित्यक्ता परित्यक्ष्यामि जीवितम्।।।।
samayaṃ ca mamāryemam yadi tvaṃ na kariṣyasi | agratas te parityaktā parityakṣyāmi jīvitam ||
हे आर्य! यह मेरा किया हुआ समझौता है; यदि तुम इसे पूरा नहीं करोगे, तो तुम्हारे सामने ही—त्यक्त होकर—मैं प्राण त्याग दूँगी।
O noble one, if you do not fulfil the agreement, it will mean I have been abandoned by you. (Therefore) I will give up my life in your presence.
FAQs
It tests satya (truth to one’s word) versus coercion: a vow is invoked, but the method is moral pressure and threat, raising questions about righteous use of promises.
Kaikeyī threatens suicide if Daśaratha does not honor the boons/compact, intensifying the crisis.
Daśaratha’s commitment to truth is indirectly emphasized, because Kaikeyī weaponizes his vow-keeping nature.