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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.1.12
Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 1: Nārada recounts Rāma’s life. Vālmīki asks whether anyone possesses all the virtues he names, Nārada identifies Rāma and recounts his story
In the sequence: he describes Rāma's strength, noble appearance, learning, discernment, and protection of his subjects and dharma → he compares his depth to the ocean, steadfastness to the Himālaya, courage to Viṣṇu, beauty to the moon, anger to the fire of destruction, patience to the earth, generosity to Kubera, and truthfulness to Dharma. Nārada now gives an introductory overview of the story, before the detailed narrative begins: Daśaratha wishes to make Rāma crown prince
1.1.12
dharmajñaḥ satyasaṃdhaś ca prajānāṃ ca hite rataḥ
yaśasvī jñānasaṃpannaḥ śucir vaśyaḥ samādhimān
a knower of dharma, true to his word, devoted to the welfare of his subjects; renowned, full of wisdom, pure, self-controlled, and of collected mind.
Words: dharmajñaḥ — a knower of dharma; satyasaṃdhaś ca — and true to his word; prajānāṃ — of his subjects; ca — and; hite rataḥ — devoted to the welfare; yaśasvī — renowned, glorious; jñānasaṃpannaḥ — full of wisdom; śucir — pure; vaśyaḥ — self-controlled (master of himself); samādhimān — of collected, concentrated mind
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.