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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.18.19

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 18: Resistance or obedience. Lakṣmaṇa offers force and Kausalyā asks Rāma to stay, Rāma cites ancestral precedents and upholds his father’s word

In the sequence: Kausalyā asks Rāma to stay and fulfill his duty to her instead; she threatens to fast to death if he leaves

2.18.19

dharmajña yadi dharmiṣṭho dharmaṃ caritum icchasi
śuśrūṣa mām ihasthas tvaṃ cara dharmam anuttamam

O knower of dharma, if being most righteous you wish to practise dharma, then stay here and serve me, and so practise the highest dharma.

Words: dharmajña — O knower of dharma; yadi — if; dharmiṣṭho — most righteous; dharmaṃ — dharma; caritum — to practise; icchasi — you wish; śuśrūṣa — serve, obey; mām — me; ihasthas — staying here; tvaṃ — you; cara — practise; dharmam — dharma; anuttamam — the highest

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.