Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 11, Shloka 5
कैकेयीवरप्रार्थना
Kaikeyi Demands the Two Boons
आवलिप्ते न जानासि त्वत्तः प्रियतरो मम।मनुजो मनुजव्याघ्राद्रामादन्यो न विद्यते।।।।
āvalipte na jānāsi tvattaḥ priyataro mama | manujo manujavyāghrād rāmād anyo na vidyate ||
O mapagmataas na ginang, hindi mo ba nalalaman? Sa akin, wala nang higit na mahal kaysa sa iyo; at sa mga lalaki, walang iba kundi si Rāma—ang tigre sa mga tao.
O king of kings, by being true to your vow, protect your race, character and lineage. Those sages whose ascetism is their wealth maintain that there is no merit superior to truthfulness which can confer man a place in the other world.ityārṣē śrīmadrāmāyaṇē vālmīkīya ādikāvyē ayōdhyākāṇḍē ēkādaśassargaḥ৷৷Thus ends the eleventh sarga of Ayodhyakanda of the holy Ramayana, the first epic composed by sage Valmiki.
FAQs
It underscores the king’s declared hierarchy of love and loyalty: marital affection toward Kaikeyī and principled esteem for Rāma as the foremost man—setting the stage for a later dharmic conflict when these loyalties collide.
Daśaratha reassures Kaikeyī of her special place and simultaneously extols Rāma, before hearing her demand.
Rāma’s excellence is emphasized through the epithet manujavyāghra, implying valor, nobility, and leadership.