सा त्वेवमुक्ता वैदेही त्वनसूयानसूयया।
प्रतिपूज्य वचो मन्दं प्रवक्तुमुपचक्रमे॥
sā tv evam uktā vaidehī tv anasūyānasūyayā
pratipūjya vaco mandaṁ pravaktum upacakrame
sā tu = she; evam = thus; uktā = addressed; vaidehī tu = when Vaidehī; anasūyā = who was free from indignation was; anasūyayā = by Anasūyā; pratipūjya = reciprocated by worshiping her; vacaḥ = words; mandam = the following gentle; pravaktum = to speak; upacakrame = and began.
When Vaidehī who was free from indignation was thus addressed by Anasūyā, she reciprocated by worshiping her and began to speak the following gentle words.
1 “As being good” means “as being good and not as being bad for her or others.” She didn’t resent these instructions as being “old-fashioned” or “oppressive” as is the fashion today. She understood that these were greatly beneficial to whoever carries them out and she will indicate this in the next few verses.
This chapter describes the conversation between Sītā and Anasūyā.
Vaidehī was free from indignation, that is, she had accepted [Anasūyā’s] instructions on the dharma of a chaste woman as being good.1