Valmiki Ramayana 2.2.4: Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 2, Shloka 4
यौवराज्य-प्रस्तावः
Proposal for Rāma’s Installation as Heir-Apparent
Spoken by King DaśarathaSetting: Ayodhya
विदितं भवतामेतद्यथा मे राज्यमुत्तमम् ।
पूर्वकैर्मम राजेन्द्रैस्सुतवत्परिपालितम् ॥४॥
viditaṃ bhavatām etad yathā me rājyam uttamam |
pūrvakair mama rājendraiḥ sutavat paripālitam ||4||
आप सब जानते हैं कि मेरा यह राज्य कितना अच्छा है। मेरे पहले राजा इसको संभाला करते थे। वो लोग प्रजा को अपने बच्चे जैसा समझ के रखते थे।
Sandhi Notes
- सोऽहम् → सः + अहम्
- योक्तुकामोऽस्मि → योक्तुकामः + अस्मि
- सुखार्हमखिलं → सुखार्हम् + अखिलम्
It is well-known to all of you that people of this greatest kingdom were ruled by my predecessors who were great kings, who looked after the subjects as though they were their own children.
The teaching
Good governance is measured by inherited dharmic standards: protect subjects as one’s own children, as the righteous ancestors did.
- Ethical theme
- Rājadharma / precedent-based ethics
For your practice
Contemplation on lineage of virtue: sustain dharma by aligning with exemplary models and living traditions.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace), with Vira (heroism)
- Mood
- Reverent, didactic, stable
Themes
- Dharma
- Rajadharma
- Ethics
- Itihasa
- Maryada
Dharma as an impersonal order (ṛta) that persists across individuals; the king aligns personal will with that order.
Conceptual echo of ṛta/dharma as sustaining principle; governance as participation in cosmic order rather than private possession.
Mahābhārata 12 (Śānti Parva): king must protect subjects like sons; Purāṇic rāja-nīti passages (e.g., Viṣṇu Purāṇa on ideal kingship); Rāmacaritamānasa: Ikṣvāku lineage praised for dharmic rule
Vedic/political ideal of 'prajā' as protected dependents; paternal metaphor common in nīti
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.70–1.71: Ikṣvāku lineage and royal virtue; Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.1–2.2: public testimony of Rāma’s suitability to continue that tradition
Anuṣṭup (śloka)
Solemn
Steady, low-register emphasis on rājyaṃ uttamam and sutavat paripālitam
FAQs
Rāja-dharma: a king must protect and nurture the people with parental responsibility, not exploit them; governance is caretaking.
In the royal assembly, Daśaratha recalls the established tradition of righteous rule upheld by earlier kings of his line.
Responsible kingship—protectiveness, continuity of good governance, and reverence for inherited dharmic standards.
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