← 2.61.24 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 61: Ayodhyā without a King

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.61.25

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 61: Ayodhyā without a King. Ministers warn that food production, worship, trade and protection will fail without a ruler and ask Vasiṣṭha to arrange succession

In the sequence: they ask Vasiṣṭha to arrange the succession.

2.61.25

sa naḥ samīkṣya dvijavaryavṛttaṃ nṛpaṃ vinā rājyam araṇyabhūtam
kumāram ikṣvākusutaṃ vadānyaṃ tvam eva rājānam ihābhiṣiñcaya

Therefore you, having regarded the plight of us foremost brahmins and this kingdom become a wilderness without a king, consecrate here as king a generous prince of Ikṣvāku's line.

Words: sa — you, being such (Vasiṣṭha); naḥ — our; samīkṣya — having regarded, considered; dvijavaryavṛttaṃ — the plight of us foremost brahmins; nṛpaṃ vinā — without a king; rājyam — the kingdom; araṇyabhūtam — become a wilderness; kumāram — the prince; ikṣvākusutaṃ — son of the Ikṣvāku line; vadānyaṃ — generous, liberal; tvam eva — you alone; rājānam — as king; ihābhiṣiñcaya — here consecrate

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.