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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.34.24

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 34: Farewell to the Queens. Daśaratha orders the chariot and supplies for Sītā, Kausalyā counsels her and Rāma takes leave of his father’s wives

In the sequence: Sītā assures her that she understands her commitment and will not abandon it in adversity → Kausalyā weeps with both sorrow and relief

2.34.24

na mām asajjanenāryā samānayitum arhati
dharmād vicalituṃ nāham alaṃ candrād iva prabhā

The noble lady should not put me on a level with wicked people; I am no more able to swerve from dharma than radiance is to depart from the moon.

Words: na — not; mām — me; asajjanenāryā — the noble lady, with a bad person; samānayitum — to put on a level, equate; arhati — ought; dharmād — from dharma; vicalituṃ — to swerve, deviate; nāham — I am not; alaṃ — able; candrād iva — as from the moon; prabhā — radiance

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.