← 3.45.41 · Araṇya Kāṇḍa 45: Rāvaṇa reveals his identity · 3.45.43 →
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.45.42
Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 45: Rāvaṇa reveals his identity. Sītā recounts her marriage and exile, he offers Queenship in Laṅkā and she rejects him with warnings of destruction
In the sequence: she insists that Rāvaṇa is as far below Rāma as lead below gold or a crow below Garuḍa, and that abducting her will destroy him
3.45.42
yad antaraṃ vāyasavainateyayor yad antaraṃ madgumayūrayor api
yad antaraṃ sārasagṛdhrayor vane tad antaraṃ dāśarathes tavaiva ca
'The difference between a crow and Garuḍa, between a cormorant and a peacock, between a crane and a vulture in the wood — such is the difference between the son of Daśaratha and you.'
Words: yad — what; antaraṃ — difference; vāyasavainateyayor — between a crow and Garuḍa; yad — what; antaraṃ — difference; madgumayūrayor — between a cormorant and a peacock; api — even; yad — what; antaraṃ — difference; sārasagṛdhrayor — between a crane and a vulture; vane — in the forest; tad — that; antaraṃ — difference; dāśarathes — of the son of Daśaratha; tavaiva — and of you yourself; ca — and
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.