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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.94.53
Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 94: Rāma questions Bharata’s governance. He asks after the family, advisers, spies, troop provisions, water, revenue and impartial justice, still unaware of Daśaratha’s death
In the sequence: he asks whether the young, old, physicians, guests, and religious communities receive care and respect → he warns against falsehood, anger, negligence, laziness, and other failures of rule, and reminds Bharata to share his comforts rather than enjoy them alone.
2.94.53
kaccid arthena vā dharmaṃ dharmaṃ dharmeṇa vā punaḥ
ubhau vā prītilobhena kāmena na vibādhase
Do you never injure dharma by wealth, nor dharma again by (misapplied) dharma, nor both by pleasure prompted by fond greed?
Words: kaccid — is it that; arthena — by wealth; vā — or; dharmaṃ — dharma; dharmaṃ — dharma; dharmeṇa — by dharma; vā — or; punaḥ — again; ubhau — both; vā — or; prītilobhena — by fond greed; kāmena — by desire, pleasure; na — not; vibādhase — you injure, oppress
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.