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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.23.18

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 23: Rāma asks Sītā to remain in Ayodhyā. Rāma reveals the exile and asks Sītā to respect Bharata’s authority, honour the Queens and care for his grieving parents

In the sequence: he explains the two boons, Bharata's succession, and his own fourteen-year exile

2.23.18

itīva vilapantīṃ tāṃ provāca raghunandanaḥ
sīte tatrabhavāṃs tāta pravrājayati māṃ vanam

As she lamented thus, the delight of the Raghus said to her: 'Sītā, my revered father is sending me away to the forest.'

Words: itīva — thus; vilapantīṃ — lamenting; tāṃ — her; provāca — said to; raghunandanaḥ — the delight of the Raghus; sīte — O Sītā; tatrabhavāṃs — his honor (the revered one); tāta — the father; pravrājayati — sends into exile; māṃ — me; vanam — to the forest

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.