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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.44.15

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 44: Story of Indra: Ocean churning and the struggle for nectar. The Devas and asuras churn the ocean for freedom from death, contend over its gifts and fight for the nectar, Indra’s side gains sovereignty

In the sequence: they decide to churn the ocean of milk for the elixir, using Mandara as the churning rod and Vāsuki as the rope

1.44.15

tatas teṣāṃ naraśreṣṭha buddhir āsīn mahātmanām
amarā nirjarāś caiva kathaṃ syāma nirāmayāḥ

Then, O best of men, this thought arose in those great-souled ones: 'How may we become immortal, undecaying, and free from disease?'

Words: tatas — then; teṣāṃ — of those; naraśreṣṭha — O best of men; buddhir — thought, idea; āsīn — arose, there was; mahātmanām — of the great-souled ones; amarā — immortal; nirjarāś caiva — and undecaying; kathaṃ — how; syāma — may we be, become; nirāmayāḥ — free from disease

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.