← 2.46.58 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 46: Rāma crosses the Gaṅgā · 2.46.60 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.46.59

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: he asks Guha for banyan sap and uses it to form his and Lakṣmaṇa's hair into matted locks → he advises Guha to guard his army, treasury, forts, and territory, then says goodbye.

2.46.59

apramatto bale kośe durge janapade tathā
bhavethā guha rājyaṃ hi durārakṣatamaṃ matam

'Be vigilant, Guha, over your army, treasury, fortresses, and countryside; for a kingdom is held the hardest of all things to guard.'

Words: apramatto — vigilant, heedful; bale — over the army; kośe — over the treasury; durge — over the fortresses; janapade — over the countryside, realm; tathā — and so; bhavethā — you should be; guha — O Guha; rājyaṃ — a kingdom; hi — for; durārakṣatamaṃ — the hardest to guard; matam — considered, held

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.