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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.16.17
Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 16: Rāma accepts fourteen years of exile. Kaikeyī explains the boons, Rāma agrees, asks for Bharata’s return and leaves to speak to Kausalyā & Sītā
In the sequence: he asks Kaikeyī to explain and promises to do whatever his father requires, even at the cost of his life
2.16.17
etad ācakṣva me devi tattvena paripṛcchataḥ
kiṃnimittam apūrvo 'yaṃ vikāro manujādhipe
“Tell me this truly, O queen, for I ask you: what is the cause of this unprecedented change in the lord of men?”
Words: etad — this; ācakṣva — tell; me — to me; devi — O queen; tattvena — truly, in truth; paripṛcchataḥ — (to me) who ask; kiṃnimittam — for what cause; apūrvo — unprecedented; 'yaṃ — this; vikāro — change, alteration; manujādhipe — in the lord of men
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.