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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.25.11
Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 25: Rāma describes the hardships of forest life. Rāma describes the forest’s hunger, exposure, dangerous animals and tapasvin hardships, Sītā remains determined to accompany him
In the sequence: snakes may block the paths and waterways
2.25.11
nadīnilayanāḥ sarpā nadīkuṭilagāminaḥ
tiṣṭhanty āvṛtya panthānam ato duḥkhataraṃ vanam
Serpents that make their homes in rivers, gliding in windings like a river, lie blocking the path; hence the forest is more painful still.
Words: nadīnilayanāḥ — having their abode in rivers; sarpā — serpents; nadīkuṭilagāminaḥ — gliding in windings like a river; tiṣṭhanty āvṛtya — they lie having covered; panthānam — the path; ato duḥkhataraṃ vanam — hence the forest is more painful
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.