Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 100, Shloka 74
शततमः सर्गः — Rāma Questions Bharata on Rājadharma
Governance, Counsel, and Public Welfare
यां वृत्तिं वर्तते तातो यां च नः प्रपितामहाः।तां वृत्तिं वर्तसे कच्चिद्याच सत्पथगा शुभा।।।।
yāṃ vṛttiṃ vartate tāto yāṃ ca naḥ prapitāmahāḥ | tāṃ vṛttiṃ vartase kaccid yā ca satpathagā śubhā ||
孩子啊，你是否遵循我父与我诸先祖所行的那一准则——吉祥而行于正道的清净行持？
I trust, you walk the auspicious path of truth (virtue) followed by our father and forefathers.
FAQs
Dharma is preserved through living tradition: one should walk the ‘satpatha’ upheld by righteous elders, not invent self-serving norms.
Rāma urges Bharata to remain anchored in the Ikṣvāku standard of conduct, especially amid political crisis and succession conflict.
Fidelity to maryādā (normative righteousness) and respect for ancestral exemplars.