Canto 1 - Boyhood
Bāla-kāṇḍa
Chapter 1: Contents of the Rāmāyaṇa Summarized
Text 1.1.89
न पुत्रमरणं किञ्चित् द्रक्ष्यन्ति पुरुषाः क्वचित्।
नार्यश्चाविधवा नित्यं भविष्यन्ति पतिव्रताः॥
na putra-maraṇaṁ kiñcid drakṣyanti puruṣāḥ kvacit
nāryaś cāvidhavā nityaṁ bhaviṣyanti pati-vratāḥ
na = no; putra-maraṇam = the death of their sons; kiñcit = and at any time [during His rule]; drakṣyanti = will see; puruṣāḥ = men; kvacit = at any place [in Rāma’s kingdom]; nāryaḥ = the women; avidhavāḥ = never widows; nityam = ever; bhaviṣyanti = will pati-vratāḥ = and they will be devoted to their husbands.
No men at any place [in Rāma’s kingdom] and at any time [during His rule] will see the death of their sons. The women will never ever be widows and they will be devoted to their husbands.
From now on, Nārada Muni summarizes Canto 7 or Uttara-kāṇḍa which primarily describes how Lord Rāma maintained the principles of varṇāśrama-dharma.
[As it will be described in Canto 7,] the brāhmaṇa’s son who had died will be brought back to life by Lord Rāma.
Avidhavāḥ indicates that the women would not have many husbands, that is, they would not be adulteresses, and they would not be widows. Pati-vratāḥ indicates that besides not being unchaste women or widows, they would not be unloving to their husbands—they would be devoted to their husbands.
Kausalyā and others had sons and were old and so are not considered widows.
NOTE. Regarding the last sentence in the commentary, Śrīla Prabhupāda has noted in his purport to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.7.45, “A widow is a widow only in name if there is a son of her husband existing. Therefore, Kṛpī, the wife of Droṇācārya and mother of Aśvatthāmā, did not die after the death of her husband.”