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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.66.17

Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 66: Rāma breaks Śiva’s bow: Janaka confirms the marriage. Rāma lifts, strings and breaks the bow, Janaka declares his marriage condition fulfilled and sends envoys to seek Daśaratha’s consent

In the sequence: drawing it, he breaks it in the middle

1.66.17

āropayitvā maurvīṃ ca pūrayām āsa vīryavān
tad babhañja dhanur madhye naraśreṣṭho mahāyaśāḥ

And having fastened the bowstring, the mighty one drew it; then that glorious best of men broke the bow in the middle.

Words: āropayitvā — having fastened, strung; maurvīṃ ca — and the bowstring; pūrayām āsa — drew (to full), bent; vīryavān — the mighty one; tad — that; babhañja — broke; dhanur — the bow; madhye — in the middle; naraśreṣṭho — the best of men; mahāyaśāḥ — of great glory

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.