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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.66.44

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 66: Kaikeyī’s disclosure. Bharata learns that Daśaratha died calling for the exiles, Kaikeyī admits arranging Rāma’s banishment and urges him to claim the throne

In the sequence: Kaikeyī admits that Rāma did nothing wrong: she obtained the Kingdom for Bharata and the exile for Rāma, after which Daśaratha died of grief → she tells Bharata to perform the funeral and take the throne, expecting gratitude for what she has done.

2.66.44

tvayā tv idānīṃ dharmajña rājatvam avalambyatām
tvatkṛte hi mayā sarvam idam evaṃvidhaṃ kṛtam

“Now, O knower of dharma, let the kingship be taken up by you; for it was for your sake that I did all this of such a kind.”

Words: tvayā — by you; tv — indeed; idānīṃ — now; dharmajña — O knower of dharma; rājatvam — the kingship; avalambyatām — let it be taken up; tvatkṛte — for your sake; hi — for; mayā — by me; sarvam — all; idam — this; evaṃvidhaṃ — of such a kind; kṛtam — was done

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.