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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.41.23
Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 41: Story of Sagara: Bhagīratha takes up the ancestral task. Aṃśumat & Dilīpa leave the ancestral task unfinished, Bhagīratha wins permission for Gaṅgā’s descent and learns that Śiva must receive her
In the sequence: Brahmā agrees but explains that the earth cannot withstand Gaṅgā's fall → only Śiva can receive her force → after speaking to the King and Gaṅgā, Brahmā departs.
1.41.23
gaṅgāyāḥ patanaṃ rājan pṛthivī na sahiṣyate
tau vai dhārayituṃ vīra nānyaṃ paśyāmi śūlinaḥ
The earth will not endure the fall of Gaṅgā, O king; to hold her, O hero, I see none other than the trident-bearer (Śiva).
Words: gaṅgāyāḥ — of Gaṅgā; patanaṃ — the fall, falling; rājan — O king; pṛthivī — the earth; na — not; sahiṣyate — will endure, bear; tau — her (lit. that/those); vai — indeed; dhārayituṃ — to hold, bear; vīra — O hero; nānyaṃ — no other; paśyāmi — I see; śūlinaḥ — than the trident-bearer (Śiva)
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.