Canto 3 -
Araṇya-kāṇḍa
Chapter 72: Kabandha Tells Rāma About Sugrīva
Text 3.72.21
सन्निधायायुधं क्षिप्रमृश्यमूकालयं कपिम्।
कुरु राघव सत्येन वयस्यं वनचारिणम्॥
sannidhāyāyudhaṁ kṣipram ṛśyamūkālayaṁ kapim
kuru rāghava satyena vayasyaṁ vanacāriṇam
sannidhāya = keep [with You]; āyudham = a weapon; kṣipram = quickly; ṛśyamūka-ālayam = who resides in Ṛśyamūka; kapim = the monkey; kuru = make; rāghava = O descendant of Raghu; satyena = and on oath; vayasyam = friends with; vanacāriṇam = and wanders in the forest.
O descendant of Raghu, quickly keep a weapon [with You] and on oath make friends with the monkey who resides in Ṛśyamūka and wanders in the forest.
[Lord Rāma] shouldn’t just make a pact of friendship [with Sugrīva] with the fire as a witness—he should keep a weapon [with Him while He promises to be a friend of Sugrīva].
NOTE. “Keep a weapon” means “Hold a weapon” while making a promise. As mentioned in the gloss to text 2.18.32, kṣatriyas promise by uttering words of oath while holding arrows and so on.