← 2.31.36 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 31: A throne or one more night
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.31.37
Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 31: A throne or one more night. Daśaratha urges Rāma to take the Kingdom, then begs him to stay overnight, Rāma refuses to delay the promise
In the sequence: he reassures his father that preserving his truth matters more than Kingship, pleasure, or life, and that he will find happiness among the forest's rivers and mountains.
2.31.37
phalāni mūlāni ca bhakṣayan vane girīṃś ca paśyan saritaḥ sarāṃsi ca
vanaṃ praviśyaiva vicitrapādapaṃ sukhī bhaviṣyāmi tavāstu nirvṛtiḥ
Eating fruits and roots in the forest, and beholding the mountains, the rivers and the lakes, entering a forest of wondrous trees, I shall be happy; let there be contentment for you.”
Words: phalāni mūlāni ca — fruits and roots; bhakṣayan — eating; vane — in the forest; girīṃś ca paśyan — and beholding the mountains; saritaḥ — the rivers; sarāṃsi ca — and the lakes; vanaṃ — the forest; praviśyaiva — having just entered; vicitrapādapaṃ — of wondrous trees; sukhī bhaviṣyāmi — I shall be happy; tavāstu nirvṛtiḥ — let there be contentment for you
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.