← 2.21.6 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 21: Rāma asks Kausalyā to remain with Daśaratha · 2.21.8 →
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.21.7
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 says she will follow him like a cow following her calf → Rāma replies that Daśaratha may not survive if she abandons him too
2.21.7
tathā nigaditaṃ mātrā tad vākyaṃ puruṣarṣabhaḥ
śrutvā rāmo 'bravīd vākyaṃ mātaraṃ bhṛśaduḥkhitām
Having heard that speech thus uttered by his mother, Rāma, a bull among men, spoke these words to his sorely grieving mother:
Words: tathā — thus; nigaditaṃ — spoken, uttered; mātrā — by (his) mother; tad — that; vākyaṃ — speech; puruṣarṣabhaḥ — bull among men; śrutvā — having heard; rāmo — Rāma; 'bravīd — spoke; vākyaṃ — words; mātaraṃ — to (his) mother; bhṛśaduḥkhitām — greatly grieved
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.