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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.38.4

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: Rāvaṇa refuses Mārīca's advice and declares that neither Suras nor asuras can change his decision to take Sītā

3.38.4

tvadvākyair na tu māṃ śakyaṃ bhettuṃ rāmasya saṃyuge
pāpaśīlasya mūrkhasya mānuṣasya viśeṣataḥ

By your words I cannot be turned aside from battle with Rāma—least of all from a man of evil character, a mere fool.

Words: tvadvākyair — by your words; na tu — but not; māṃ — me; śakyaṃ — possible; bhettuṃ — to break, divert; rāmasya — from Rāma; saṃyuge — in battle; pāpaśīlasya — of evil character; mūrkhasya — foolish; mānuṣasya — of a (mere) man; viśeṣataḥ — especially

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.