Canto 2 -
Ayodhyā-kāṇḍa
Chapter 52: Rāma Crosses the Gaṅgā on Guha’s Boat
Text 2.52.39
कथं हि त्वद्विहीनोऽहं प्रतियास्यामि तां पुरीम्।
तव तावद्वियोगेन पुत्रशोकाकुलामिव॥
kathaṁ hi tvad-vihīno’haṁ pratiyāsyāmi tāṁ purīm
tava tāvad viyogena putra-śokākulām iva
katham = how; hi = indeed; tvat-vihīnaḥ = without You; aham = I; pratiyāsyāmi = can go back; tām = to that; purīm = city; tava tāvat viyogena = because of being without You; putra-śoka-ākulām = afflicted by the distress of having lost a son; iva = that appears to be.
Without You, how indeed can I go back to that city that, because of being without You, appears to be afflicted by the distress of having lost its son?
In some manuscripts, tava tāta appears instead of tava tāvad indicating that Sumantra considers Rāma to be His master. Because Sumantra is older than Rāmacandra, he also considers Him to be a child.