श्रीवाल्मीकिरुवाच । अथोनषोडशे वर्षे वर्तमाने रघूद्वहे । रामानुयायिनि तथा शत्रुघ्ने लक्ष्मणेऽपि च ॥ १ ॥
śrīvālmīkiruvāca | athōnaṣōḍaśē varṣē vartamānē raghūdvahē | rāmānuyāyini tathā śatrughnē lakṣmaṇē’pi ca || 1 ||
Translation
Śrī Vālmīki said: Then, when the pride of the Raghus was in the year before his sixteenth, and Śatrughna and Lakṣmaṇa too, who followed Rāma, were the same age,
Word by word
- śrī
- Śrī
- vālmīkiḥ
- Vālmīki
- uvāca
- said
- atha
- then
- ūna
- short of
- ṣōḍaśē
- the sixteenth
- varṣē
- year
- vartamānē
- was in
- raghu
- of the Raghus
- udvahē
- when the pride
- rāma
- Rāma
- anuyāyini
- who followed
- tathā
- likewise
- śatrughnē
- Śatrughna
- lakṣmaṇē
- Lakṣmaṇa
- api
- too
- ca
- and
Meaning
The commentary marks the turn: the last sarga described the daily round that purified Rāma's mind; this one begins to show its fruit, dispassion. Verses 1 to 3 set the scene in one sentence. "The year before his sixteenth" (ūna-ṣoḍaśa) means that Rāma was a few months short of sixteen.