← 3.63.17 · Araṇya Kāṇḍa 63: Discovery of the wounded Jaṭāyu · 3.63.19 →
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.63.18
Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 63: Discovery of the wounded Jaṭāyu. Rāma mistakes him for Sītā’s killer, Jaṭāyu names Rāvaṇa and explains the wreckage, the brothers embrace him
In the sequence: he identifies the broken chariot and weapons as Rāvaṇa's and recounts how he brought the abductor down → Rāvaṇa then cut his wings and flew away with Sītā; Jaṭāyu begs Rāma not to strike him as well
3.63.18
pariśrāntasya me pakṣau chittvā khaḍgena rāvaṇaḥ
sītām ādāya vaidehīm utpapāta vihāyasaṃ
rakṣasā nihataṃ pūrvma na māṃ hantuṃ tvam arhasi
“When I was spent, Rāvaṇa, cutting off my wings with his sword, took Sītā Vaidehī and flew up into the sky; already struck down by the rākṣasa before, I do not deserve to be slain by you.”
Words: pariśrāntasya — of the exhausted, spent one; me — of me, my; pakṣau — the two wings; chittvā — having cut off; khaḍgena — with a sword; rāvaṇaḥ — Rāvaṇa; sītām — Sītā; ādāya — having taken; vaidehīm — Vaidehī; utpapāta — flew up, rose up; vihāyasaṃ — into the sky, air; rakṣasā — by the rākṣasa; nihataṃ — struck down, slain; pūrvma — before, already; na — not; māṃ — me; hantuṃ — to slay; tvam — you; arhasi — ought, deserve
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.