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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.18.34

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: he tells Lakṣmaṇa that affection and military force cannot cancel a binding promise

2.18.34

saṃśrutya ca pitur vākyaṃ mātur vā brāhmaṇasya vā
na kartavyaṃ vṛthā vīra dharmam āśritya tiṣṭhatā

And having promised to obey the word of a father, or a mother, or a brahmin, it must not be made void, O hero, by one who stands firm in dharma.

Words: saṃśrutya — having promised, heard; ca — and; pitur — of the father; vākyaṃ — word; mātur — of the mother; vā — or; brāhmaṇasya — of a brahmin; vā — or; na — not; kartavyaṃ — to be made; vṛthā — in vain, void; vīra — O hero; dharmam — dharma; āśritya — resorting to, relying on; tiṣṭhatā — by (one) standing firm

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.