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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.54.28

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 54: Rāvaṇa’s deadline and threat. Sītā refuses him, he gives her twelve months to submit or be killed for his meal, then sends her to the aśoka grove

In the sequence: they must take her to the aśoka grove, guard her closely, and alternate threats with soothing words to force compliance

3.54.28

tatraināṃ tarjanair ghoraiḥ punaḥ sāntvaiś ca maithilīm
ānayadhvaṃ vaśaṃ sarvā vanyāṃ gajavadhūm iva

'There, by dread threats and again by soothing words, all of you bring Maithilī under control, as one tames a wild cow-elephant.'

Words: tatraināṃ — there her; tarjanair — by threats; ghoraiḥ — dread; punaḥ — again; sāntvaiś — by soothing words; ca — and; maithilīm — Maithilī; ānayadhvaṃ — bring (you all); vaśaṃ — under control; sarvā — all (of you); vanyāṃ — wild; gajavadhūm — a cow-elephant; iva — as, like

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.