After respectfully accompanying the great sage and his entourage some distance from his hermitage, Rāma paused. With humility, he bowed to the chief sage and, having received their full approval and guidance, returned to his own blessed dwelling. Yet, even as the sages departed and the hermitage emptied, Rāma, the noble Rāghava, did not leave its precincts for even a moment. The ascetics, steadfast followers of the seers’ path, continued to look to Rāma as their guide and protector. Thus concludes the one hundred sixteenth chapter of the Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa in the ancient and holy Rāmāyaṇa composed by Vālmīki. When the ascetics had gone, Rāma began to reflect deeply. For many reasons, he no longer found that place suitable for dwelling. “Here,” he thought, “Bharata saw me, along with my mothers and the people of the city. My mind, remembering them, grieves constantly.” The ground itself bore the marks of Bharata’s visit, trampled and churned by the hooves of horses and elephants, and the dung of their passage. Deciding it was best to seek another place, Rāma set out with Sītā, the noble Vaidehī, and his loyal brother Lakṣmaṇa. Their journey brought them to the hermitage of the venerable sage Atri. Rāma, renowned for his virtue, offered his respects, and Atri received him with the warmth and affection of a father welcoming his own son. With his own hands, the great sage arranged all hospitality, honoring Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa, and Sītā, and offering them comfort. Turning to his aged wife, Atri spoke to her with gentle words, honoring her wisdom and devotion, for he was a knower of righteousness and ever mindful of the welfare of all beings. Atri then addressed Sītā: “Vaidehī, receive Anasūyā, the most fortunate among ascetics, who follows the path of righteousness.” He spoke to Rāma as well, praising the ascetic’s devotion and austere life. “When the world was scorched by ten years of unbroken drought, it was Anasūyā who produced roots and fruits and caused the Ganges to flow for the world’s sake. Endowed with fierce austerity, adorned by discipline, she has performed penance for ten thousand years. Purified by her vows, she once created a night that lasted ten days for the sake of the gods. She is like a mother to you, O sinless one.” Atri continued, “Let Vaidehī approach this renowned woman—worthy of reverence by all beings, aged and always free from anger—Anasūyā, whose fame fills the world through her deeds.” When the sage had spoken thus, Rāghava replied, “So be it,” and addressed Sītā, who knew righteousness: “Princess, you have heard the sage’s words. For your own welfare, quickly approach the ascetic.” Hearing her husband’s counsel, Sītā, desiring his good, approached the venerable wife of Atri. Anasūyā was frail and wrinkled, her hair pale with age, her body trembling like a banana plant in the wind. Yet her presence radiated peace and virtue. Sītā, highly fortunate and devoted to her husband, greeted Anasūyā without hesitation, introducing herself with humility. With hands joined in reverence, Sītā inquired after the ascetic’s well-being, her heart delighted at meeting such a blameless soul. Seeing Sītā, Anasūyā, the highly fortunate and righteous woman, spoke kindly, her heart rejoicing: “By fortune, you observe righteousness, O Sītā. You have abandoned your kinsfolk, honor, and prosperity to follow Rāma into exile in the forest. By fortune, you accompany him.” She continued, “Whether he dwells in city or forest, whether he is virtuous or not, for women whose husband is dear, their worlds are greatly elevated. Even if a husband is of bad conduct or deprived of wealth, women of noble nature regard him as their highest deity. I see no relative superior to the husband, O Vaidehī; everywhere he is fit to be revered, like the inexhaustible fruit of austerity. But ignoble women do not discern virtue or fault in their husbands; their hearts are ruled by desire, and they wander, dependent upon their spouse. Such women, O Maithilī, who fall to improper conduct, incur disgrace and fall from righteousness. But women like you, endowed with virtue and understanding, live according to their true nature, upholding righteousness. Therefore, steadfast in devotion, following the path of faithful wives, be a companion in righteousness to your husband; from this, you will attain both honor and virtue.” Thus ends the one hundred seventeenth chapter of the Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa in the ancient and revered Rāmāyaṇa of Vālmīki. Hearing these words from Anasūyā, Sītā, free from envy, honored her counsel and began to speak gently: “O noble lady, it is not surprising that you speak to me in this way. I too know that a husband is a woman’s highest reverence. Even if my husband were without good conduct, O noble one, still I must serve him without deviation. How much more, then, when he is virtuous, praiseworthy, compassionate, self-controlled, steadfast in love, righteous, and as dear to me as my own mother and father? “The way mighty Rāma behaves toward Kausalyā, he behaves toward all the other royal women as well. Even toward women whom the king has seen only once, the hero, devoted to righteousness and setting aside pride, acts with the respect due to a mother. And as I came to this lonely and fearful forest, the great advice my mother-in-law gave me has remained firmly in my heart. The words my own mother spoke to me at the time of my marriage, in the presence of fire, I have also kept in mind. All this has been renewed in me by your words, O righteous one; for a woman, there is no greater austerity than service to her husband.