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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.42.17
Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 42: The citizens return to Ayodhyā without Rāma. Families reproach the men for returning without Rāma and imagine abandoning Kaikeyī’s Kingdom to join him
In the sequence: they fear life under Kaikeyī and doubt Daśaratha will survive the separation
2.42.17
ko nv anenāpratītena sotkaṇṭhitajanena ca
saṃprīyetāmanojñena vāsena hṛtacetasā
Who could take joy in this cheerless dwelling, with its longing people, unlovely, that steals away the heart?
Words: ko — who; nv — indeed; anenāpratītena — with this cheerless; sotkaṇṭhitajanena — with its longing folk; ca — and; saṃprīyetāmanojñena — would take joy—unlovely; vāsena — with the dwelling, life; hṛtacetasā — that steals the heart
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.