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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.73.14
Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 73: Paraśurāma: Omens and the encounter on the road home. Janaka gives bridal wealth and the company leaves Mithilā, mixed omens and a dust-darkened sky precede Paraśurāma’s armed appearance
In the sequence: dust darkens the sun and hides the directions → the army is stunned, while the King, princes, and munis remain conscious
1.73.14
tamasā saṃvṛtaḥ sūryaḥ sarvā na prababhur diśaḥ
bhasmanā cāvṛtaṃ sarvaṃ saṃmūḍham iva tad balam
The sun was shrouded in darkness, none of the quarters shone; all was covered with dust, and that army was as if stupefied.
Words: tamasā — by darkness; saṃvṛtaḥ — covered, shrouded; sūryaḥ — the sun; sarvā — all; na — not; prababhur — shone; diśaḥ — the quarters, directions; bhasmanā — by ash, dust; cāvṛtaṃ — and covered; sarvaṃ — all, everything; saṃmūḍham — stupefied, bewildered; iva — as if; tad — that; balam — army
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.