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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.40.26

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 40: The citizens follow to the Tamasā. Rāma asks them to support Bharata, then leaves his chariot to walk beside the elderly brāhmaṇas

In the sequence: they say their sacrifices depend on his return and plead with him as the party reaches the Tamasā River.

2.40.26

bahūnāṃ vitatā yajñā dvijānāṃ ya ihāgatāḥ
teṣāṃ samāptir āyattā tava vatsa nivartane

The sacrifices of many brahmins who have come here are begun and spread out; their completion, dear child, depends upon your turning back.

Words: bahūnāṃ — of many; vitatā — spread out, undertaken; yajñā — sacrifices; dvijānāṃ — of the brahmins; ya — who; ihāgatāḥ — come here; teṣāṃ — of them, their; samāptir — completion, conclusion; āyattā — dependent, resting upon; tava — your, of you; vatsa — O dear child; nivartane — in turning back

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki. 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.