← 1.23.12 · Bāla Kāṇḍa 23: Story of Tāṭakā’s forest: Indra’s cleansing and the ruined country · 1.23.14 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.23.13

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 23: Story of Tāṭakā’s forest: Indra’s cleansing and the ruined country. The Sarayū’s origin and confluence are explained, Indra’s cleansing gives Malada & Karūṣa their names and Tāṭakā’s devastation makes the region impassable

In the sequence: Viśvāmitra explains that Brahmā created Lake Mānasa on Kailāsa through his mind, and that the Sarayū flows from it past Ayodhyā → the roar arises from the churning and agitation of the waters as the Sarayū meets the Gaṅgā → the brothers salute both rivers, land on the southern bank, and continue. Entering a dense, frightening forest full of predators and harsh animal cries, Rāma asks about it

1.23.13

nānāprakāraiḥ śakunair vāśyadbhir bhairavasvanaiḥ
siṃhavyāghravarāhaiś ca vāraṇaiś cāpi śobhitam

adorned with birds of various kinds crying in fearful notes, and with lions, tigers, boars, and elephants too;

Words: nānāprakāraiḥ — of various kinds; śakunair — with birds; vāśyadbhir — crying, screeching; bhairavasvanaiḥ — of fearful notes; siṃhavyāghravarāhaiś — with lions, tigers and boars; ca — and; vāraṇaiś — with elephants; cāpi — and also; śobhitam — adorned, graced

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki. Sanskrit: The Vālmīki-Rāmāyaṇa: Critical Edition, Oriental Institute, Baroda, 1960–1975 (gen. eds. G. H. Bhatt, U. P. Shah); IAST from GRETIL (Göttingen). Translation and word glosses: Claude Opus 4.6–4.7; summaries and sequences: ChatGPT Astra (machine-made). Numbering follows the Critical Edition, not the vulgate (e.g. Gita Press, valmikiramayan.net), so sarga and verse numbers can differ from those editions.