← 2.42.5 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 42: The citizens return to Ayodhyā without Rāma · 2.42.7 →
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.42.6
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: women reproach the men for coming back without Rāma and praise Lakṣmaṇa for staying with him
2.42.6
kiṃ nu teṣāṃ gṛhaiḥ kāryaṃ kiṃ dāraiḥ kiṃ dhanena vā
putrair vā kiṃ sukhair vāpi ye na paśyanti rāghavam
What use to them are homes, what use wives, or wealth, or sons, or even pleasures—to those who do not see Rāghava?
Words: kiṃ — what; nu — indeed; teṣāṃ — to them; gṛhaiḥ — with homes; kāryaṃ — use, business; kiṃ — what; dāraiḥ — with wives; kiṃ — what; dhanena — with wealth; vā — or; putrair — with sons; vā — or; kiṃ — what; sukhair — with pleasures; vāpi — or even; ye — who; na — not; paśyanti — see; rāghavam — Rāghava
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.