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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.41.23

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 41: Rāma leaves the sleeping citizens. Sumantra lays misleading tracks, Rāma crosses the Tamasā with Sītā & Lakṣmaṇa before the followers wake

In the sequence: he sends Sumantra ahead alone with the chariot, telling him to drive north for a while and return so that the tracks will mislead the followers

2.41.23

sūtas tataḥ saṃtvaritaḥ syandanaṃ tair hayottamaiḥ
yojayitvātha rāmāya prāñjaliḥ pratyavedayat

Then the charioteer, in haste, having yoked the chariot with those excellent horses, announced it to Rāma with palms joined.

Words: sūtas — the charioteer; tataḥ — then; saṃtvaritaḥ — hastened; syandanaṃ — the chariot; tair — with those; hayottamaiḥ — with the excellent horses; yojayitvātha — having yoked, then; rāmāya — to Rāma; prāñjaliḥ — with palms joined; pratyavedayat — announced, reported

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.