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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.14.3

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 14: Rāma answers the summons. Expecting his abhiṣeka and assuming Kaikeyī’s support, Rāma takes leave of Sītā and rides out with Lakṣmaṇa

In the sequence: Sumantra is admitted through the guarded courtyards and finds Rāma seated with Sītā beside him

2.14.3

tatra kāṣāyiṇo vṛddhān vetrapāṇīn svalaṃkṛtān
dadarśa viṣṭhitān dvāri stryadhyakṣān susamāhitān

There he saw, stationed at the door, aged men in ochre robes, staves in hand, well-adorned, overseers of the women's quarters, fully composed.

Words: tatra — there; kāṣāyiṇo — clad in ochre; vṛddhān — aged (men); vetrapāṇīn — staff in hand; svalaṃkṛtān — well-adorned; dadarśa — saw; viṣṭhitān — stationed; dvāri — at the door; stryadhyakṣān — overseers of the women; susamāhitān — fully composed

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.