Shloka 21
सकामा भव कैकेयि विधवा राज्यमावस।न हि तं पुरुषव्याघ्रं विना जीवितुमुत्सहे।।।।
sakāmā bhava kaikeyi vidhavā rājyam āvasa |
na hi taṃ puruṣavyāghraṃ vinā jīvitum utsahe ||
“കൈകേയി, നിന്റെ ആഗ്രഹം നിറവേറട്ടെ—വിധവയായി രാജ്യം വാഴുക. ആ പുരുഷവ്യാഘ്രനായ രാമനില്ലാതെ ഞാൻ ജീവിക്കാൻ ഉത്സാഹിക്കുന്നില്ല.”
O Kaikeyi, your desire is fulfilled. Rule the kingdom as a widow. Without Rama, the best of men, I don't desire to live.
FAQs
The verse highlights the destructive ethical cost of desire-driven choices: when personal craving overrides dharma (right order and compassion), it fractures family and polity, leading to suffering for all.
After Kaikeyī’s demands lead to Rāma’s exile, Daśaratha, overwhelmed, speaks bitterly to Kaikeyī, declaring he cannot live without Rāma.
Rāma’s excellence is implied through the epithet “puruṣavyāghra” (best among men), while Daśaratha’s deep paternal attachment and emotional honesty are foregrounded.