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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.21.13

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 21: Rāma asks Kausalyā to remain with Daśaratha. Kausalyā asks to follow Rāma, he persuades her to remain and care for the grieving Daśaratha

In the sequence: she renews her plea to accompany him, saying she cannot endure life among her co-wives

2.21.13

mayā caiva bhavatyā ca kartavyaṃ vacanaṃ pituḥ
rājā bhartā guruḥ śreṣṭhaḥ sarveṣām īśvaraḥ prabhuḥ

The father's command must be obeyed both by me and by you; the king is our supporter, our elder, the highest—the lord and master of all.

Words: mayā — by me; caiva — and; bhavatyā — by you; ca — and; kartavyaṃ — must be done; vacanaṃ — the command, word; pituḥ — of the father; rājā — the king; bhartā — supporter, master; guruḥ — elder, teacher; śreṣṭhaḥ — best, highest; sarveṣām — of all; īśvaraḥ — lord; prabhuḥ — master

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.