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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.61.12

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 61: Story of Viśvāmitra: Two verses save Śunaḥśepa. Śunaḥśepa seeks protection, Viśvāmitra curses his sons for refusing substitution and teaches two verses that preserve the boy’s life and fulfil the sacrifice

In the sequence: led by Madhuṣyanda, they mock the request to sacrifice his children for someone else's

1.61.12

munes tu vacanaṃ śrutvā madhuṣyandādayaḥ sutāḥ
sābhimānaṃ naraśreṣṭha salīlam idam abruvan

But hearing the sage's words, the sons headed by Madhuṣyanda, O best of men, spoke this with arrogance and mockery:

Words: munes tu — but of the sage; vacanaṃ — the words; śrutvā — having heard; madhuṣyandādayaḥ — headed by Madhuṣyanda; sutāḥ — the sons; sābhimānaṃ — with arrogance; naraśreṣṭha — O best of men; salīlam — mockingly, in sport; idam — this; abruvan — said

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.