← 3.41.28 · Araṇya Kāṇḍa 41: Rāma pursues the deer · 3.41.30 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.41.29

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: he discusses hunting for food and recreation and the value of unusual things obtained through effort, imagining the hide as a seat for them both

3.41.29

māṃsahetor api mṛgān vihārārthaṃ ca dhanvinaḥ
ghnanti lakṣmaṇa rājāno mṛgayāyāṃ mahāvane

For the sake of flesh, and also for sport, archer-kings kill deer in the hunt in the great forest, Lakṣmaṇa.

Words: māṃsahetor api — even for the sake of flesh; mṛgān — deer; vihārārthaṃ ca — and for the sake of sport; dhanvinaḥ — archers, bowmen; ghnanti — kill; lakṣmaṇa — O Lakṣmaṇa; rājāno — kings; mṛgayāyāṃ — in the hunt; mahāvane — in the great forest

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.