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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.61.13

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

1.61.13

katham ātmasutān hitvā trāyase 'nyasutaṃ vibho
akāryam iva paśyāmaḥ śvamāṃsam iva bhojane

“How is it, O lord, that abandoning your own sons you would save another's son? We regard this as a thing not to be done, like dog's flesh among foods.

Words: katham — how; ātmasutān — your own sons; hitvā — having abandoned; trāyase — you would save; 'nyasutaṃ — another's son; vibho — O lord; akāryam — a thing not to be done; iva — as, like; paśyāmaḥ — we regard, see; śvamāṃsam — dog's flesh; iva — like; bhojane — among food, in eating

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.