Canto 2 -
Ayodhyā-kāṇḍa
Chapter 62: Kausalyā Pacifies Daśaratha
Text 2.62.12
प्रसीद शिरसा याचे भूमौ निपतितास्मि ते।
याचितास्मि हता देव हन्तव्याहं न हि त्वया॥
prasīda śirasā yāce bhūmau nipatitāsmi te
yācitāsmi hatā deva hantavyāhaṁ na hi tvayā
prasīda = to be pleased [with me]; śirasā = touch my head to it; yāce = and beg you; bhūmau = on the ground; nipatitā asmi = I fall; te = you have; yācitā = beseeched; asmi = me [and so]; hatā = I am [already] destroyed; deva = O lord; hantavyā = should suppress; aham = me; na = not; hi = just; tvayā = you.
O lord, I fall on the ground, touch my head to it and beg you to be pleased [with me]! You have beseeched me [and so] I am [already] destroyed! You should not just suppress me.1
Kausalyā offered her obeisances unto her husband on the ground. “You should not just suppress me” means “You should not just suppress me like a maidservant; you should beat me to eradicate this offense [of mine].”1