Ramayana — Yuddha Kanda, Sarga 1, Shloka 9
प्रथमः सर्गः
Rama Praises Hanuman; Anxiety over Crossing the Ocean
नियुक्तो नृपतेः कार्यं न कुर्याद्यस्समाहितः ।भृत्यो युक्तस्समर्थश्च तमाहुः पुरुषाधमम् ।।।।
niyukto nṛpateḥ kāryaṃ na kuryād yaḥ samāhitaḥ | bhṛtyo yuktaḥ samarthaś ca tam āhuḥ puruṣādhamam ||
Còn bề tôi đã nhận mệnh vua, vốn khéo giỏi và đủ sức, mà vẫn không chuyên tâm làm xong việc ấy, thì bị gọi là kẻ hèn kém nhất.
"If one who is capable and efficient has been entrusted with a task by a king and fails to do the work agreed to, is said to be a lowly person."
FAQs
Accountability is dharma: accepting a duty (especially a public duty) and then failing it is morally degrading, regardless of one’s talent.
The text completes a moral hierarchy of service—best, middling, and worst—implicitly contrasting with Hanumān’s fulfilled duty.
Reliability (kṛtaniścayatā): the virtue of actually completing what one has undertaken.