← 2.12.2 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 12: Daśaratha summons Rāma · 2.12.4 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.12.3

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 12: Daśaratha summons Rāma. Kaikeyī insists on the promise, Daśaratha repudiates her & Bharata, Sumantra leaves unaware of the exile

In the sequence: Kaikeyī tells Daśaratha that truth is the highest duty and that he must honor his promise

2.12.3

āhuḥ satyaṃ hi paramaṃ dharmaṃ dharmavido janāḥ
satyam āśritya hi mayā tvaṃ ca dharmaṃ pracoditaḥ

For those who know dharma declare truth to be the highest dharma; and it was by taking my stand on truth that I urged you to your duty.

Words: āhuḥ — they declare; satyaṃ — truth; hi — for, indeed; paramaṃ — highest, supreme; dharmaṃ — dharma, duty; dharmavido — those who know dharma; janāḥ — people; satyam — truth; āśritya — having resorted to, relying on; hi — indeed; mayā — by me; tvaṃ — you; ca — and; dharmaṃ — to (your) duty; pracoditaḥ — were urged, incited

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.