Rāmāyaṇa 1.1.1-2 "A śloka a day #SAH #SanskritGrammar

श्रीमद्वाल्मीकिरामायणम्

Śrīmadvālmīkirāmāyaṇam

बालकाण्डम्

Bālakāṇḍam

प्रथमः सर्गः

Prathamaḥ Sargaḥ

नारदवाक्यम्

Nāradavāykam

तपःस्वाध्यायनिरतं तपस्वी वाग्विदां वरम् 

नारदं परिपप्रच्छ वाल्मीकिर्मुनिपुन्गवम्

को न्वस्मिन् सांप्रतं लोके गुणवान् कश्च वीर्यवान्

धर्मज्ञश्च कृतज्ञश्च सत्यवाक्यो दृढव्रतः

tapaḥsvādhyāyanirataṃ tapasvī vāgvidāṃ varam

nāradaṃ paripapraccha vālmīkir munipuṃgavam

ko nv asmin sāmprataṃ loke guṇavān kaś ca vīryavān

dharmajñaś ca kṛtajñaś ca satyavākyo dṛḍhavrataḥ

[The hermit] Vālmīki, dedicated to austerities, asked Nārada, the best of munis, the best among experts skilled in speech [and] devoted to austerity and study [of the Vedas]:  

"Who is in this present world endowed with virtues? Who is brave, knows the dharma, is grateful, speaks the truth, and is firm in his vows?" 

My big problem (as a Hindi speaker) when I first read the first verse - I couldn't tell who was asking whom the question. And which descriptions went with which 'muni' Then I was given a small (actually, very big) hint. Work out what is in the nominative case (प्रथमा विभक्ति) and what is in the accusative case (द्वितीय). That is the key. In nominative are two words - tapasvi and Vālmīki. He is the doer/asker. In the accusative is Nārada, the one being asked, and all qualifiers in accusative are connected to him.  

तपःस्वाध्यायनिरतं - [to him] who is devoted to [Vedic] studies and [religious] austerities

तपः austerity, discipline (masc., nom., sing.)

स्वाध्यायः recitation/self-study (masc., nom., sing)

निरतं engaged in, devoted to, pleased by (accusative past participle [ni + √ram] as adjective)

तपस्वी  ascetic (masc., nom., sing)

वाग्विदाम् of [those] skilled in speech (genitive, masc. plural) stem = वाग्वित् 

वरम् best (accusative adj., agreeing with Nāradam)*

नारदं - (accusative, because otherwise, being a masculine, it would have been नारदः I cannot stress this enough)

परिपप्रच्छ = परि + पप्रच्छ  asked about = (perfect of √प्रछ् to ask; perfect, 3rd person, sing. agreeing with Vālmīki) [Pari = prefix = about.]

वाल्मीकिर्मुनिपुन्गवम् (वाल्मीकिः+मुनिपुङ्गवम्)

वाल्मीकिः Valmīki, (masc, nom, the doer/asker)

मुनिपुङ्गवम् to the bull [best] among munis (this is in accusative so it refers to Nārada NOT to  Valmīki. If it referred to Valmīki, the ending would be मुनिपुंगवः masc. nom. with a visarga, since puṃgava is masc.)

को who? (masc, nominative, sing, This is कः in sandhi.  

नु now then/certainly (avyaya/indeclinable) 

अस्मिन् in this (locative, masc.,sing., of idam 'this') nu+asmin in sandhi become  न्वस्मिन् 

सांप्रतं  now, at present (adverb) 

लोके  in this world ( locative, neut, sing.)

गुणवान्  endowed with/possessed of virtues, [good] qualities (masc., nom, sing)

कश्च and who? (कः in sandhi with च)

वीर्यवान् endowed with heroic qualities (masc, nom, sing)

धर्मज्ञश्च (धर्मज्ञः+च) Knower of dharma (masc., nom., sing) 

कृतज्ञश्च (कृतज्ञः+च) grateful/correct in conduct (masc, nom, sing) 

सत्यवाक्यो (सत्य+वाक्यः) Whose speech is true 

दृढव्रतः He whose vow is firm

Rāvaṇa threatens to eat Sītā for breakfast

Having killed Jaṭāyu, Rāvaṇa takes Sītā back to Laṅkā, but she refuses to become his wife. He threatens to torment her but she remains faithful to Rāma.

वृद्धम् खगम् हत्वा रावणः सीतया सह लङ्काम्  अगच्छत्

Having killed (the) old bird, Rāvaṇa went to Lanka with Sītā

वृद्धम् old, adj. agreeing with bird

खगम् bird. masc. accusative sing. Accusative because Rāvaṇa does something 'to' the bird. If it was just 'bird' in the nominative, it would have been खगः not खगम् . Please take special note of this. Not to distinguish between the two is a mistake very easily made by Hindi speakers. 

हत्वा having killed.This grammatical form is called the 'gerund'. It is an indeclinable (avyaya) particle. The ending could be  त्वा or य, and will not change with gender/number/case etc. It talks of an action that has already happened.

रावणः masc, nom, sing. 

सीतया सह instrumental case+ सह = 'with' Sītā

लङ्काम्  To Laṅkā. fem., acc., sing. 

अगच्छत् - went. 3rd person, nom., sing., agreeing with रावणः

लङ्कायाम् रावणः सीताम् पुनः अवदत् हे सीते मम भार्या भव इति

In Laṅkā Rāvaṇa said again to Sītā - become my wife.

लङ्कायाम् - in Laṅkā. locative, fem., sing.

रावणः - Rāvaṇa. masc., nom., sing.

सीताम्  - to Sītā. accusative, fem, singular

पुनः - again (avyaya)

अवदत् - said. Past tense of √वद् to speak

हे सीते - O Sītā. vocative, fem., sing. 

मम - my

भार्या  - wife nom., fem., sing.

भव - become. This is the imperative form of √भू to become

इति - direct speech marker, and an avyaya

सीता  तु न कदा अपि अवदत्

But Sītā said, never!

सीता fem., nom., sing.  

तु - but/lekin. avyaya - used for stress

न कदा अपि - never (once we do sandhi, you will normally see this as कदापि). कदापि means sometime, any time, but with the न it becomes NEVER

अवदत् - said

कुपितः रावणः सीताम् उद्याने अस्थापयत्

(The) angry Rāvaṇa placed Sītā in a garden.

कुपितः रावणः (The) angry Rāvaṇa - masc, nominative, singular. Note adj/noun agreement

सीताम् - सीता को fem, acc., sing. (again, please note it is not enough to say सीता as we do in Hindi. It has to be सीताम्) 

उद्याने in (a) garden. Locative, neuter, singular

अस्थापयत् - placed/established. past tense of √स्था 'to stand, stay

तस्मिन् उद्याने अशोकवृक्षाः आसन्

In that garden there were Aśoka trees

(I've always loved the irony of Aśoka w.r.t Sītā's state...)

तस्मिन् उद्याने - locative - in that garden 

अशोकवृक्षाः - Aśoka trees masc., nom., plural

आसन् - were. 3rd person, nom., plural past of √अस् - to be

रावणः अवदत् यदि  सीता अचिरेण मम भार्या न भविष्यति तर्हि अहम् ताम् प्रातराशे खादिष्यामि इति

Rāvaṇa said, if Sītā, does not become my wife soon, I will eat her for breakfast.

रावणः अवदत् - Rāvaṇa said

यदि  - if (avyaya)

सीता 

अचिरेण - soon (avyaya)

मम - my

भार्या - wife, fem., sing., nom.

न - not

भविष्यति - will become. 3rd person, sing., nom., future of √भू

तर्हि - then (we did yadi/tarhi on the 22nd of Sept)

अहम् - I

ताम्  - accusative, feminine, singular उस को

प्रातराशे - locative, masc., singular (lit. at breakfast)

खादिष्यामि - (I) will eat. 1st person sing., future of √खाद् to eat

इति - direct speech marker, and an avyaya

तत् श्रुत्वा सीता  अतीव दुःखिता अभवत् 

Having heard that, Sītā became very distressed/miserable.

तत् -that

श्रुत्वा - having heard - gerund, like हत्वा above

सीता  

अतीव दुःखिता extremely distressed - notice दुःखिता is an adjective and agrees with सीता, but अतीव does not, making it an ... avyaya

अभवत् - became, 3rd person, sing., past of √भू 

रावणः सीताम् राक्षसीनाम् मध्ये अस्थापयत् 

Rāvaṇa placed Sītā amongst demonesses

रावणः Rāvaṇa

सीताम् accusative fem., sing. सीता को

राक्षसीनाम् - genitive fem., plural - 'of' the demonesses 

मध्ये - in the middle. locative singular of मध्य (masc/neut)  

अस्थापयत् - placed/established 3rd person sing., past

राक्षसीभिः सीता पुनः पुनः पीडिता

Sītā was tormented again and again by the demonesses. (The 'asti' is assumed, which is very common in Sanksrit sentences. These are called nominative sentences) 

राक्षसीभिः instrumental, plural, fem., - 'by the' rākṣasīs 

सीता nom., fem., singular

पुनः पुनः again and again (double avyaya - 'baar baar')

पीडिता - tormented adjective agreeing with सीता 

राक्षस्यः पुनः पुनः आक्रोशन् रावणम् गच्छ तस्य भार्या भव च इति

The rākṣasīs shrieked again and again - Go to Rāvaṇa and become his wife.

राक्षस्यः - nom., fem., plural - rākṣasīs

पुनः पुनः - again and again

आक्रोशन् - (They) shrieked. 3rd person, fem., plural, past of √kruś 

रावणम् - masc., accusative., sing., to Rāvaṇa

गच्छ - go. imperative of √gam

तस्य - his

भार्या - wife

भव - become. imperative of √bhū

च - and (avyaya)

इति - direct speech marker (avyaya)

रामे एव स्निह्यामि इति सीता अचिन्तयत्

Sītā thought - I only love Rāma 

रामे locative case, (the act of loving takes the locative in Sanskrit)

एव - only (avyaya)

स्निह्यामि - I love  

इति - direct speech/thought marker (avyaya)

सीता - fem, nominative, singular

अचिन्तयत् - thought past of √चिन्त् - to think