← 1.13.45 · Bāla Kāṇḍa 13: Aśvamedha yajña: The horse’s return and completion of the rites

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.13.46

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 13: Aśvamedha yajña: The horse’s return and completion of the rites. The returning horse is sacrificed with prescribed posts, a Garuḍa-shaped altar and continual hospitality, Daśaratha rewards the priests and requests the rite for sons

In the sequence: with the Aśvamedha completed, Daśaratha asks Ṛṣyaśṛṅga to perform the putrīyā iṣṭi for offspring → Ṛṣyaśṛṅga agrees and again promises four sons.

1.13.46

tatheti ca sa rājānam uvāca dvijasattamaḥ
bhaviṣyanti sutā rājaṃś catvāras te kulodvahāḥ

“So be it,” said that best of brahmins to the king; “four sons will be yours, O king, carriers-on of your line.”

Words: tatheti — ‘so be it’; ca — and; sa — he; rājānam — to the king; uvāca — said; dvijasattamaḥ — the best of brahmins; bhaviṣyanti — will be; sutā — sons; rājaṃś — O king; catvāras — four; te — your; kulodvahāḥ — carriers-on of the line

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.