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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.7.19

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 7: Mantharā’s alarm, Kaikeyī’s joy. Mantharā warns of danger to Bharata, Kaikeyī rewards her and declares equal affection for both princes

In the sequence: Mantharā presents Rāma's succession as a threat to Kaikeyī and Bharata, claiming that Daśaratha has used Bharata's absence to give Kausalyā's family the advantage

2.7.19

narādhipakule jātā mahiṣī tvaṃ mahīpateḥ
ugratvaṃ rājadharmāṇāṃ kathaṃ devi na budhyase

“Born in a royal family, you are the chief queen of the lord of the earth; how, O queen, do you not grasp the sternness of the duties of kings?

Words: narādhipakule — in a royal family; jātā — born; mahiṣī — chief queen; tvaṃ — you; mahīpateḥ — of the lord of the earth; ugratvaṃ — sternness, fierceness; rājadharmāṇāṃ — of the duties of kings; kathaṃ — how; devi — O queen; na — not; budhyase — you understand

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.