← 1.75.7 · Bāla Kāṇḍa 75: Paraśurāma: Defeat and the surrender of heavenly worlds · 1.75.9 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.75.8

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 75: Paraśurāma: Defeat and the surrender of heavenly worlds. Rāma strings the bow, Paraśurāma yields his earned heavenly worlds to retain movement, recognizes Viṣṇu and departs for Mahendra

In the sequence: he says he will spare Paraśurāma's life because he is a brāhmaṇa and out of regard for Viśvāmitra → the divine arrow cannot be released fruitlessly, so Paraśurāma must choose whether to lose his power of movement or the heavenly worlds earned by austerity

1.75.8

na hy ayaṃ vaiṣṇavo divyaḥ śaraḥ parapuraṃjayaḥ
moghaḥ patati vīryeṇa baladarpavināśanaḥ

For this divine arrow of Viṣṇu, conqueror of enemy cities, destroyer of might and pride, does not, by reason of its power, fall in vain.

Words: na hy — for not; ayaṃ — this; vaiṣṇavo — of Viṣṇu; divyaḥ — divine; śaraḥ — arrow; parapuraṃjayaḥ — conqueror of enemy cities; moghaḥ — in vain, fruitless; patati — falls; vīryeṇa — by its power; baladarpavināśanaḥ — destroyer of strength and pride

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.