← 2.23.6 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 23: Rāma asks Sītā to remain in Ayodhyā · 2.23.8 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.23.7

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: when Rāma enters, she notices his pale, troubled face

2.23.7

vivarṇavadanaṃ dṛṣṭvā taṃ prasvinnam amarṣaṇam
āha duḥkhābhisaṃtaptā kim idānīm idaṃ prabho

Seeing him with face gone pale, sweating and troubled, she, herself burning with grief, said: 'What is this now, my lord?'

Words: vivarṇavadanaṃ — with face gone pale; dṛṣṭvā — having seen; taṃ — him; prasvinnam — sweating; amarṣaṇam — troubled, unable to bear it; āha — said; duḥkhābhisaṃtaptā — burning with grief; kim idānīm — what now; idaṃ — this; prabho — O lord

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.