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 ||
Hỡi bậc cao quý, nếu ngài không thực hiện lời ước định này của tôi, thì ngay trước mắt ngài—bị ngài bỏ rơi—tôi sẽ xả bỏ mạng sống trong sự hiện diện của ngài.
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.