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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.46.6

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 tells Sumantra that they will now continue on foot and that he must return with the chariot → the driver protests at the injustice of Rāma's hardship

2.46.6

rāmam eva tu dharmajñam upagamya vinītavat
kim ahaṃ karavāṇīti sūtaḥ prāñjalir abravīt

Approaching Rāma, the knower of dharma, humbly, the charioteer, palms joined, said, 'What am I to do?'

Words: rāmam eva — Rāma indeed; tu — and; dharmajñam — the knower of dharma; upagamya — having approached; vinītavat — humbly, respectfully; kim — what; ahaṃ — I; karavāṇīti — 'shall I do', thus; sūtaḥ — the charioteer; prāñjalir — with palms joined; abravīt — said

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki. 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.