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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.44.16

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 44: Rāvaṇa’s parivrājaka disguise. He approaches Sītā with Vedic words and praise of her beauty, she receives him as a brāhmaṇa guest

In the sequence: he recites Vedic words, speaks humbly, and praises her beauty, asking whether she is a devī

3.44.16

hrīḥ śrīḥ kīrtiḥ śubhā lakṣmīr apsarā vā śubhānane
bhūtir vā tvaṃ varārohe ratir vā svairacāriṇī

Are you Modesty, or Prosperity, or Fame, or lovely Lakṣmī, or an apsaras, O fair-faced one? Or Fortune, O lovely one, or Rati wandering at will?

Words: hrīḥ — Modesty (Hrī); śrīḥ — Prosperity (Śrī); kīrtiḥ — Fame (Kīrti); śubhā — lovely; lakṣmīr — Lakṣmī; apsarā — an apsaras; vā — or; śubhānane — O fair-faced one; bhūtir — Fortune (Bhūti); vā — or; tvaṃ — you; varārohe — O lovely one; ratir — Rati (goddess of love); vā — or; svairacāriṇī — wandering at will

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki. 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.