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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.17.4
Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 17: Birth and upbringing of the princes; Viśvāmitra’s arrival. Daśaratha’s four sons are born and grow devoted in pairs, Viśvāmitra arrives and receives the King’s promise to fulfil his request
In the sequence: The narrative returns to the completion of Daśaratha's hayamedha (horse-sacrifice): the Suras depart with their shares, the King returns to Ayodhyā, the visiting rulers leave, and Ṛṣyaśṛṅga departs with Śāntā after receiving honors
1.17.4
gateṣu pṛthivīśeṣu rājā daśarathaḥ punaḥ
praviveśa purīṃ śrīmān puraskṛtya dvijottamān
When the lords of the earth had gone, the illustrious king Daśaratha again entered the city, placing the best of brahmins at the fore.
Words: gateṣu — having gone (loc. abs.); pṛthivīśeṣu — the lords of the earth (loc. abs.); rājā — the king; daśarathaḥ — Daśaratha; punaḥ — again; praviveśa — entered; purīṃ — the city; śrīmān — the illustrious one; puraskṛtya — having placed at the fore; dvijottamān — the best of brahmins
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.