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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.101.16

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 101: Rāma rejects Jābāli’s advice. A ruler’s actions guide his subjects, truth sustains trust and no worldly gain justifies breaking his father’s promise

In the sequence: he will not break the commitment to his father for gain or convenience

2.101.16

so 'haṃ pitur nideśaṃ tu kimarthaṃ nānupālaye
satyapratiśravaḥ satyaṃ satyena samayīkṛtaḥ

Why then should I not carry out my father's command — I who have made a true promise, and am truly bound by a covenant of truth?

Words: so 'haṃ — I, then; pitur nideśaṃ — the father's command; tu — but, then; kimarthaṃ — why, for what reason; nānupālaye — should I not observe; satyapratiśravaḥ — one who has promised truly; satyaṃ — truly; satyena — by a truth (a true covenant); samayīkṛtaḥ — bound by covenant

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki, the ādikavi of the ādikāvya: the first poet of the first poem. Sanskrit: The Vālmīki-Rāmāyaṇa: Critical Edition, Oriental Institute, Baroda, 1960–1975 (gen. eds. G. H. Bhatt, U. P. Shah); IAST from GRETIL (Göttingen). Translation and word glosses: Claude Opus 4.6–4.7; summaries and sequences: ChatGPT Astra (machine-made). Numbering follows the Critical Edition, not the vulgate (e.g. Gita Press, valmikiramayan.net), so sarga and verse numbers can differ from those editions.