Canto 2 -
Ayodhyā-kāṇḍa
Chapter 7: Mantharā Instructs Kaikeyī to Stop the Coronation
Text 2.7.8
उत्तमेनाभिसंयुक्ता हर्षेणार्थपरा सती।
राममाता धनं किं नु जनेभ्यः सम्प्रयच्छति॥
uttamenābhisaṁyuktā harṣeṇārtha-parā satī
rāma-mātā dhanaṁ kiṁ nu janebhyaḥ samprayacchati
uttamena = with the most excellent; abhisaṁyuktā = endowed; harṣeṇa = joy; artha-parā = so greedy; satī = being; rāma-mātā = Rāma’s mother; dhanam = wealth; kim nu = why; janebhyaḥ = to the people; samprayacchati = does distribute.
Being so greedy, why does Rāma’s mother, endowed with the most excellent joy, distribute wealth to the people?
1 Authorized charity in this life leads to wealth in the next life. This is ordinary common sense for anyone enlightened enough to accept Vedic authority.
Artha-parā satī indicates that Mantharā also intended to ask, “Being so focused on attaining more and more wealth [in the future], why does Rāma’s mother distribute wealth to people?”1 Because Mantharā [hated Kausalyā and] could not tolerate her, she did not mention her by name. She simply referred to Kausalyā as “Rāma’s mother.”
1. Authorized charity in this life leads to wealth in the next life. This is ordinary common sense for anyone enlightened enough to accept Vedic authority.