Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 54: Sumantra comforts Kausalyā · 2.54.2 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.54.1

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 54: Sumantra comforts Kausalyā. He describes Lakṣmaṇa’s service and Sītā’s curiosity about the forest, but Kausalyā’s grief persists

In the sequence: Kausalyā asks Sumantra to take her to the travelers, saying she cannot remain without them

2.54.1

tato bhūtopasṛṣṭeva vepamānā punaḥ punaḥ
dharaṇyāṃ gatasattveva kausalyā sūtam abravīt

Then, trembling again and again as if possessed by a spirit, as if her strength had drained away onto the ground, Kausalyā said to the charioteer:

Words: tato — then; bhūtopasṛṣṭeva — as if possessed by a spirit; vepamānā — trembling; punaḥ punaḥ — again and again; dharaṇyāṃ — on the ground, earth; gatasattveva — as if her strength were gone; kausalyā — Kausalyā; sūtam — to the charioteer; abravīt — said

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.