← 3.41.23 · Araṇya Kāṇḍa 41: Rāma pursues the deer · 3.41.25 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.41.24

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 41: Rāma pursues the deer. Lakṣmaṇa suspects Mārīca, Sītā asks for the living animal or its hide and Rāma leaves Lakṣmaṇa to guard her

In the sequence: Rāma too is captivated by its appearance and speaks of fulfilling her wish

3.41.24

na vane nandanoddeśe na caitrarathasaṃśraye
kutaḥ pṛthivyāṃ saumitre yo 'sya kaś cit samo mṛgaḥ

Not in the Nandana grove, nor in the Caitraratha wood, how much less on earth, Saumitri, is there any deer that is the equal of this one.

Words: na vane — not in the forest; nandanoddeśe — in the region of Nandana; na caitrarathasaṃśraye — nor in the resort of Caitraratha; kutaḥ — how then, whence; pṛthivyāṃ — on the earth; saumitre — O Saumitri; yo 'sya — which of this; kaś cit — any; samo mṛgaḥ — equal deer

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.