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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.38.16

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 38: Rāvaṇa compels Mārīca. He rejects unwelcome advice, offers half his Kingdom for help and threatens immediate death if Mārīca refuses the deer disguise

In the sequence: he repeats the instructions to become a golden, silver-spotted deer and attract Sītā, expecting both brothers to leave her in pursuit

3.38.16

tvāṃ tu māyā mṛgaṃ dṛṣṭvā kāñcanaṃ jātavismayā
ānayainam iti kṣipraṃ rāmaṃ vakṣyati maithilī

Seeing you as a golden illusion-deer, Maithilī, filled with wonder, will quickly say to Rāma, 'Fetch this one!'

Words: tvāṃ tu — and you; māyā — illusory, magic (compound-initial); mṛgaṃ — deer; dṛṣṭvā — having seen; kāñcanaṃ — golden; jātavismayā — filled with wonder; ānayainam iti — 'fetch this one'; kṣipraṃ — quickly; rāmaṃ — to Rāma; vakṣyati — will say; maithilī — Maithilī

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.