← 2.16.2 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 16: Rāma accepts fourteen years of exile · 2.16.4 →
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.16.3
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: Rāma bows to Daśaratha and Kaikeyī, but his father can only say his name and weep
2.16.3
rāmety uktvā ca vacanaṃ vāṣpaparyākulekṣaṇaḥ
śaśāka nṛpatir dīno nekṣituṃ nābhibhāṣitum
Having spoken only the word 'Rāma,' his eyes brimming with tears, the wretched king could neither look at him nor speak.
Words: rāmety — 'Rāma'; uktvā — having said; ca — and; vacanaṃ — the word; vāṣpaparyākulekṣaṇaḥ — his eyes troubled with tears; śaśāka — was able; nṛpatir — the king; dīno — wretched; nekṣituṃ — not to look; nābhibhāṣitum — nor to speak
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.