उदारवृत्तार्थपदैर्मनोरमैः तदास्य रामस्य चकारकीर्तिमान् । समाक्षरैश्श्लोकशतैर्यशस्विनो यशस्करं काव्यमुदारधीर्मुनि: ।।1.2.42।।
Meaning
So the renowned and wise sage composed, in hundreds of charming verses of equal syllable count and lofty, meaningful words, a poem conferring glory on celebrated Rama.
Word-by-word (pada-artha)
| Word | Devanagari | Meaning | Grammatical role |
|---|---|---|---|
| udāravṛttārthapadaiḥ | उदारवृत्तार्थपदैः | with lofty metre, meaning and diction | Instrumental plural qualifying ślokaśataiḥ |
| manoramaiḥ | मनोरमैः | delightful to the mind | Instrumental plural adjective |
| tadā | तदा | then | Adverb — temporal |
| asya rāmasya | अस्य रामस्य | of this Rama | Genitive singular |
| cakāra | चकार | composed, made | Main verb — perfect 3rd sg |
| kīrtimān | कीर्तिमान् | the renowned one (the sage) | Subject — nominative singular |
| samākṣaraiḥ | समाक्षरैः | of equal syllable-count | Instrumental plural adjective |
| ślokaśataiḥ | श्लोकशतैः | in hundreds of slokas | Instrumental plural — means |
| yaśasvinaḥ | यशस्विनः | of the glorious one (Rama) | Genitive singular |
| yaśaskaram | यशस्करम् | conferring renown | Adjective qualifying kāvyam |
| kāvyam | काव्यम् | the poem | Object — accusative singular |
| udāradhīḥ | उदारधीः | of noble intellect | Epithet — nominative singular |
| muniḥ | मुनिः | the sage | Subject — nominative singular |
Scholar commentary
valmikiramayan.net Prose Commentary
Desiraju Hanumanta Rao's prose rendering with embedded explanatory notes
After Brahma vanishes, Valmiki's disciples chant the same verse repeatedly in wonder -- the source notes this repeated communal recitation is precisely what gives the verse its standing as a sloka in the technical sense, not Valmiki's private composition of it alone. Valmiki then resolves that he will compose the entire Ramayana in this same meter, and does so, in the source's words, with 'uncomplicated compounds' and 'well knit' sentences befitting the story of Rama's defeat of Ravana.
1 of 16 traditions have commentary on this shloka. Traditions without a verse-specific commentary here are omitted rather than filled in.
Reference: 1.2.42 · Bāla Kāṇḍa