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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.3.2
Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 3: Vālmīki sees the whole narrative. Vālmīki sees the narrative through meditation and sets out its events, including those still to come
In the sequence: Seeking fuller knowledge of Rāma's life, Vālmīki sips water, composes himself, and sits on darbha grass with its tips facing east → through spiritual insight he examines the course of the story
1.3.2
upaspṛśyodakaṃ saṃyan muniḥ sthitvā kṛtāñjaliḥ
prācīnāgreṣu darbheṣu dharmeṇānveṣate gatim
Sipping water and self-restrained, the sage, standing with palms joined, seated on darbha-grass with its tips pointing east, sought out the course (of the tale) by the power of dharma (yogic insight).
Words: upaspṛśyodakaṃ — having sipped water; saṃyan — restraining himself; muniḥ — the sage; sthitvā — having stood; kṛtāñjaliḥ — with palms joined; prācīnāgreṣu — with tips pointing east; darbheṣu — on the darbha (sacred kuśa) grass; dharmeṇānveṣate — seeks by (the power of) dharma; gatim — the course, way (of the story)
Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki, the ādikavi of the ādikāvya: the first poet of the first poem. 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.