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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.21.3

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: Kausalyā imagines Rāma, raised in comfort, struggling to live on roots and fruit

2.21.3

yasya bhṛtyāś ca dāsāś ca mṛṣṭāny annāni bhuñjate
kathaṃ sa bhokṣyate nātho vane mūlaphalāny ayam

He whose servants and dependents eat dainty foods — how shall this lord eat roots and fruits in the forest?

Words: yasya — whose; bhṛtyāś — servants; ca — and; dāsāś — dependents, slaves; ca — and; mṛṣṭāny — dainty, delicious; annāni — foods; bhuñjate — eat; kathaṃ — how; sa — he; bhokṣyate — will eat; nātho — the lord; vane — in the forest; mūlaphalāny — roots and fruits; ayam — this one

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.