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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.21.20

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: he urges her to continue her duties and religious observances while awaiting his return

2.21.20

vratopavāsaniratā yā nārī paramottamā
bhartāraṃ nānuvarteta sā ca pāpagatir bhavet

Even a most excellent woman, devoted to vows and fasting, if she does not attend upon her husband, comes to an evil end.

Words: vratopavāsaniratā — devoted to vows and fasting; yā — who; nārī — woman; paramottamā — most excellent; bhartāraṃ — husband; nānuvarteta — does not attend upon; sā — she; ca — even, and; pāpagatir — to an evil destiny; bhavet — would come, become

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.