Ramayana — Sundara Kanda, Sarga 21, Shloka 3
सीताया रावणं प्रति धर्मोपदेशः
Sita’s Dharmic Admonition to Ravana
निवर्तय मनो मत्तः स्वजने क्रियतां मनः।।।।न मां प्रार्थयितुं युक्तं सुसिद्धिमिव पापकृत्।
nivartaya mano mattaḥ sva-jane kriyatāṃ manaḥ | na māṃ prārthayituṃ yuktaṃ su-siddhim iva pāpa-kṛt ||
मनो मत्तः निवर्तय; स्वजने मनः क्रियताम्। पापकृत् सुसिद्धिमिव, मां प्रार्थयितुं न युक्तम्।
"Turn your mind away from me and fix it on your wives. You should not expect to seek me just as a sinner cannot hope to seek blessedness.
FAQs
Respect for marital fidelity and consent: desiring another’s spouse is adharma, and moral ends cannot be reached through immoral intent.
Sītā directly refuses Rāvaṇa’s advances in Aśoka-vana and instructs him to desist.
Sītā’s chastity (pativratā-dharma) and unwavering adherence to truth and propriety.