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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.11.8

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 11: Aśvamedha yajña: Release of the horse and preparations. Ṛṣyaśṛṅga orders the horse released, Daśaratha commissions the sacrificial ground on the Sarayū’s northern bank and warns that ritual errors endanger the patron

In the sequence: Daśaratha explains his unhappiness at being childless and his resolve to perform the aśvamedha with Ṛṣyaśṛṅga's help

1.11.8

mama lālapyamānasya putrārthaṃ nāsti vai sukham
tadarthaṃ hayamedhena yakṣyāmīti matir mama

“For me, lamenting for the sake of a son, there is truly no happiness; therefore my resolve is: ‘I shall sacrifice with a horse-sacrifice to that end.’

Words: mama — of me, for me; lālapyamānasya — of one lamenting, wailing; putrārthaṃ — for the sake of a son; nāsti — there is not; vai — truly; sukham — happiness; tadarthaṃ — to that end, for that purpose; hayamedhena — with a horse-sacrifice; yakṣyāmīti — ‘I shall sacrifice’; matir — the resolve, thought; mama — my

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki. 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.