Canto 3 -
Araṇya-kāṇḍa
Chapter 38: Mārīca Instructs Rāvaṇa
Text 3.38.10
काममस्तु महत्सैन्यं तिष्ठत्विह परन्तप॥
kāmam astu mahat sainyaṁ tiṣṭhatv iha parantapa
kāmam = certainly; astu = there could be; mahat = a great; sainyam = army [with you]; tiṣṭhatu = let it stay; iha = here; parantapa = O scorcher of your enemies.
“Certainly, there could be a great army [with you]. Let it stay here, O scorcher of your enemies!
Though [Daśaratha] had a large army, the entire army should [just] remain there [in Ayodhyā] because it was incapable of factually carrying out the work [of protecting the sage’s sacrificial performances]. This is implied here.