← 1.63.3 · Bāla Kāṇḍa 63: Story of Viśvāmitra: Rambhā and the failure to master anger · 1.63.5 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.63.4

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 63: Story of Viśvāmitra: Rambhā and the failure to master anger. Indra sends Rambhā to tempt him, Viśvāmitra turns her to stone and realizes that anger has again consumed his austerity

In the sequence: she protests that she fears Viśvāmitra's wrath → Indra reassures her, promising to support her in springtime as a cuckoo, with Kāma beside him

1.63.4

tām uvāca sahasrākṣo vepamānāṃ kṛtāñjalim
mā bhaiṣi rambhe bhadraṃ te kuruṣva mama śāsanam

The thousand-eyed one said to her as she trembled with palms joined: “Do not be afraid, O Rambhā — blessings on you — carry out my command.

Words: tām — to her; uvāca — said; sahasrākṣo — the thousand-eyed one; vepamānāṃ — trembling; kṛtāñjalim — with palms joined; mā bhaiṣi — do not fear; rambhe — O Rambhā; bhadraṃ te — blessings on you; kuruṣva — carry out, do; mama — my; śāsanam — command

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.