मावमंस्था दशरथं भर्तारं वरदं पतिम्।
भर्तुरिच्छा हि नारीणां पुत्रकोट्या विशिष्यते॥
māvamaṁsthā daśarathaṁ bhartāraṁ varadaṁ patim
bhartur icchā hi nārīṇāṁ putra-koṭyā viśiṣyate
mā = don’t; avamaṁsthā = insult; daśaratham = King Daśaratha; bhartāram = your husband; varadam = who has [always] fulfilled your requests; patim = and master; bhartuḥ = of their husband; icchā = the desire; hi = actually; nārīṇām = for women; putra-koṭyāḥ = than millions of sons; viśiṣyate = is more valuable.
Don’t insult King Daśaratha, your husband and master who has [always] fulfilled your requests.1 For women, the desire of their husband is actually more valuable than millions of sons.
1 Sumantra’s point was, “Be grateful to him.”
1 A dhārmika woman should even give up trying to make her son (even if he is dhārmika) happy in order to make her dhārmika husband happy. Kaikeyī was not bothered about her husband’s distress—she just wanted her son Bharata to be happy. Sumantra rightly points out that she had erred in balancing her love for her husband with her love for her son.
Following the desire of a [dhārmika] husband is more important [than even trying to make one’s son happy]. It is implied here that a woman should fulfill the desire of her husband by even ceasing to follow one’s son.1