← 2.76.9 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 76: Bharata’s declaration to the assembly · 2.76.11 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.76.10

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 76: Bharata’s declaration to the assembly. He rejects the throne offered by Vasiṣṭha, declares Rāma the rightful ruler and orders Sumantra to prepare the expedition

In the sequence: Bharata refuses to take the position of his virtuous elder brother, saying that both he and the Kingdom belong to Rāma

2.76.10

caritabrahmacaryasya vidyā snātasya dhīmataḥ
dharme prayatamānasya ko rājyaṃ madvidho haret

Who, being of my kind, would seize the kingdom from a man who has fulfilled his vow of studentship, is graduate in learning, wise, and striving in dharma?

Words: caritabrahmacaryasya — of one who has fulfilled the vow of studentship; vidyā snātasya — of one bathed (graduated) in learning; dhīmataḥ — of the wise one; dharme — in dharma; prayatamānasya — of one striving; ko — who; rājyaṃ — the kingdom; madvidho — one like me; haret — would seize, take away

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.