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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.46.54

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 46: Rāma crosses the Gaṅgā. He sends Sumantra back as proof of departure, forms matted locks with banyan sap and crosses while Sītā prays

In the sequence: Rāma explains why he must return: the empty chariot will convince Kaikeyī that the exile is real and protect Daśaratha from suspicion of evading his promise

2.46.54

mama priyārthaṃ rājñaś ca sarathas tvaṃ purīṃ vraja
saṃdiṣṭaś cāsi yānarthāṃs tāṃs tān brūyās tathātathā

'For my sake and the king's, go with the chariot to the city; and the messages with which you are charged, deliver them, each just so.'

Words: mama priyārthaṃ — for my pleasure, my sake; rājñaś ca — and the king's; sarathas — together with the chariot; tvaṃ — you; purīṃ — to the city; vraja — go; saṃdiṣṭaś cāsi — and you are charged, instructed; yānarthāṃs — which matters, messages; tāṃs tān — those various; brūyās — you should speak; tathātathā — just so, each accordingly

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.