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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.21.16
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
2.21.16
āsāṃ rāma sapatnīnāṃ vastuṃ madhye na me kṣamam
naya mām api kākutstha vanaṃ vanyaṃ mṛgīṃ yathā
yadi te gamane buddhiḥ kṛtā pitur apekṣayā
O Rāma, to dwell in the midst of these co-wives is not bearable for me; lead me too to the forest, O Kākutstha, like a wild doe, if your mind is set on going out of regard for your father.
Words: āsāṃ — of these; rāma — O Rāma; sapatnīnāṃ — co-wives; vastuṃ — to dwell; madhye — in the midst; na — not; me — for me; kṣamam — bearable, proper; naya — lead; mām — me; api — also; kākutstha — O Kākutstha; vanaṃ — to the forest; vanyaṃ — wild; mṛgīṃ — a doe; yathā — like; yadi — if; te — your; gamane — in going; buddhiḥ — resolve, mind; kṛtā — made, set; pitur — of the father; apekṣayā — out of regard for
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.