← 2.26.10 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 26: Sītā’s foretold forest life · 2.26.12 →
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.26.11
Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 26: Sītā’s foretold forest life. She recalls predictions heard in her parents’ home and refuses separation despite Rāma’s hesitation
In the sequence: she also recalls hearing the same prospect from a bhikṣiṇī (female renunciant) in her mother's presence and says she has long wanted this journey
2.26.11
kanyayā ca pitur gehe vanavāsaḥ śruto mayā
bhikṣiṇyāḥ sādhuvṛttāyā mama mātur ihāgrataḥ
And as a maiden in my father's house I heard of the forest-dwelling from a mendicant woman of virtuous conduct, in the very presence of my mother.
Words: kanyayā ca — and as a maiden; pitur gehe — in my father's house; vanavāsaḥ śruto mayā — forest-dwelling was heard by me; bhikṣiṇyāḥ — from a female mendicant; sādhuvṛttāyā — of virtuous conduct; mama mātur ihāgrataḥ — here before my mother
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.