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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.54.6

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 54: Story of Viśvāmitra: Defeat, Śiva’s weapons and retaliation. His army and sons are destroyed, Viśvāmitra wins Śiva’s weapons through austerity and returns to burn Vasiṣṭha’s hermitage

In the sequence: Viśvāmitra's hundred sons rush at Vasiṣṭha → the ṛṣi burns them and their forces to ashes with a single “huṃ”

1.54.6

abhyadhāvat susaṃkruddhaṃ vasiṣṭhaṃ japatāṃ varam
huṃkāreṇaiva tān sarvān nirdadāha mahān ṛṣiḥ

rushed in great fury upon Vasiṣṭha, the best of those who mutter prayers; but the great seer burnt them all up with a mere 'hum' sound.

Words: abhyadhāvat — rushed upon, ran at; susaṃkruddhaṃ — greatly enraged; vasiṣṭhaṃ — Vasiṣṭha; japatāṃ varam — the best of those who mutter prayers; huṃkāreṇaiva — with a mere 'hum' sound; tān sarvān — all of them; nirdadāha — burnt up, consumed; mahān — the great; ṛṣiḥ — seer

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.