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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.23.19

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

2.23.19

kule mahati saṃbhūte dharmajñe dharmacāriṇi
śṛṇu jānaki yenedaṃ krameṇābhyāgataṃ mama

O Jānakī, born in a great family, knower of dharma and practicer of dharma, hear by what course this has come upon me.

Words: kule mahati — in a great family; saṃbhūte — O you born; dharmajñe — O knower of dharma; dharmacāriṇi — O practicer of dharma; śṛṇu — hear; jānaki — O Jānakī; yenedaṃ — by which this; krameṇābhyāgataṃ — has come about in due course; mama — to me

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki, the ādikavi of the ādikāvya: the first poet of the first poem. 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.