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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.53.25

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 53: Daśaratha’s remorse. Sumantra describes the horses’ reluctance and the country’s grief, Daśaratha regrets his uncounselled decision and begs to see Rāma

In the sequence: saying that he will die without another sight of him, he calls for all three travelers and faints again → Kausalyā watches in fear.

2.53.25

aśobhanaṃ yo 'ham ihādya rāghavaṃ didṛkṣamāṇo na labhe salakṣmaṇam
itīva rājā vilapan mahāyaśāḥ papāta tūrṇaṃ śayane sa mūrchitaḥ

'Ill-fated am I, that today, longing to see Rāghava here with Lakṣmaṇa, I do not obtain that sight.' Lamenting thus, the greatly glorious king suddenly fell upon his bed in a swoon.

Words: aśobhanaṃ — ill-fated, wretched; yo 'ham — I who; ihādya — here today; rāghavaṃ — Rāghava; didṛkṣamāṇo — longing to see; na — not; labhe — I obtain; salakṣmaṇam — together with Lakṣmaṇa; itīva — thus, as it were; rājā — the king; vilapan — lamenting; mahāyaśāḥ — greatly glorious; papāta — fell; tūrṇaṃ — suddenly, quickly; śayane — upon the bed; sa — he; mūrchitaḥ — swooning, in a faint

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.