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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.14.19

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 14: Putrakāmeṣṭi and Viṣṇu’s promised human birth. Ṛṣyaśṛṅga begins the putrīyā iṣṭi, the Devas ask Viṣṇu to take human birth because Rāvaṇa’s protection excludes humans

In the sequence: Viṣṇu arrives → the Suras ask him to divide himself fourfold and become sons through Daśaratha's three wives → in human form he must kill Rāvaṇa and free the worlds and tapasvins from fear.

1.14.19

tatra tvaṃ mānuṣo bhūtvā pravṛddhaṃ lokakaṇṭakam
avadhyaṃ daivatair viṣṇo samare jahi rāvaṇam

There, having become a man, O Viṣṇu, slay in battle Rāvaṇa, that flourishing thorn to the world, unslayable by the gods.

Words: tatra — there; tvaṃ — you; mānuṣo — a man; bhūtvā — having become; pravṛddhaṃ — flourishing, grown mighty; lokakaṇṭakam — thorn to the world; avadhyaṃ — unslayable; daivatair — by the gods; viṣṇo — O Viṣṇu; samare — in battle; jahi — slay; rāvaṇam — Rāvaṇa

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.