Shloka 2.55.2
चित्रकूटमार्गोपदेशः — Instructions for the Chitrakuta Route and the Yamuna Crossing
तेषां चैव स्वस्त्ययनं महर्षि स्स चकार ह।प्रस्थितांश्चैव तान्प्रेक्ष्य पिता पुत्रानिवान्वगात्।।।।
kālindīmadhyamāyātā sītā tv enām avandata | svasti devi tarāmi tvāṃ pārayen me patir vratam ||
jakṣye tvāṃ gosahasreṇa surāghaṭaśatena ca | svasti pratyāgate rāme purīm ikṣvākupālitām ||
When Sītā reached midstream in the Kāliṇdī (Yamunā), she bowed to the river-goddess: “May there be welfare, O Devī; I am crossing you—may my husband’s vow be fulfilled. When Rāma returns safely to Ayodhyā, the city guarded by the Ikṣvāku line, I shall worship you with a thousand cows and a hundred jars of surā.”
Seeing them setting forth, the great sage blessed them for a safe journey and followed them like a father following his children.
Dharma is shown as reverence joined to accountability: Sītā prays for safe passage and binds herself to a future act of worship if the desired outcome occurs—linking faith with truthful commitment.
Midway through crossing the Yamunā, Sītā offers salutations and makes a conditional vow of offerings upon Rāma’s safe return to Ayodhyā.
Pativratā-nisthā (steadfast devotion to her husband’s righteous path) and satya-saṅkalpa (truthful resolve to keep a vow).