← 1.44.4 · Bāla Kāṇḍa 44: Story of Indra: Ocean churning and the struggle for nectar · 1.44.6 →
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.44.5
Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 44: Story of Indra: Ocean churning and the struggle for nectar. The Devas and asuras churn the ocean for freedom from death, contend over its gifts and fight for the nectar, Indra’s side gains sovereignty
In the sequence: The brothers marvel at Gaṅgā's descent and the filling of the ocean → they spend the night reflecting on the story, which makes the hours seem brief
1.44.5
gatā bhagavatī rātriḥ śrotavyaṃ paramaṃ śrutam
kṣaṇabhūteva sā rātriḥ saṃvṛtteyaṃ mahātapaḥ
imāṃ cintayataḥ sarvāṃ nikhilena kathāṃ tava
“The blessed night has passed; the supreme (tale) that was to be heard has been heard. O great ascetic, this night became as if it were but a moment, for me pondering this whole tale of yours in its entirety.
Words: gatā — gone, passed; bhagavatī — blessed, revered; rātriḥ — the night; śrotavyaṃ — (that which was) to be heard; paramaṃ — supreme; śrutam — (has been) heard; kṣaṇabhūteva — as if it had become a moment; sā — that; rātriḥ — night; saṃvṛtteyaṃ — this has turned out to be; mahātapaḥ — O great ascetic; imāṃ — this; cintayataḥ — of me pondering; sarvāṃ — whole, all; nikhilena — in its entirety, completely; kathāṃ — tale, story; tava — your
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.