← 1.25.3 · Bāla Kāṇḍa 25: Rāma kills Tāṭakā · 1.25.5 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.25.4

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 25: Rāma kills Tāṭakā. Rāma’s bowstring draws her attack, he kills her with an arrow to the breast and the Devas ask Viśvāmitra to reward him with divine weapons

In the sequence: Rāma joins his palms and agrees to obey Viśvāmitra → he recalls Daśaratha’s instruction, given in Ayodhyā before his elders, and affirms the need to protect the region, cows, and brāhmaṇas

1.25.4

so 'haṃ pitur vacaḥ śrutvā śāsanād brahma vādinaḥ
kariṣyāmi na saṃdehas tāṭakāvadham uttamam

So I, having heard my father's word, at the command of the utterer of sacred lore, shall accomplish the excellent slaying of Tāṭakā — of this there is no doubt.

Words: so — he, I; 'haṃ — I; pitur — of the father; vacaḥ — word; śrutvā — having heard; śāsanād — at the command; brahma — of sacred lore, the Veda; vādinaḥ — of the utterer; kariṣyāmi — I shall do, accomplish; na — not, no; saṃdehas — doubt; tāṭakāvadham — the slaying of Tāṭakā; uttamam — excellent, supreme

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.