← 2.25.5 · Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa 25: Rāma describes the hardships of forest life · 2.25.7 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.25.6

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: he describes the frightening sounds of lions and mountain streams

2.25.6

girinirjharasaṃbhūtā girikandaravāsinām
siṃhānāṃ ninadā duḥkhāḥ śrotuṃ duḥkham ato vanam

The roars of the lions dwelling in mountain caves, rising up by the mountain torrents, are painful to hear; hence the forest is sorrow.

Words: girinirjharasaṃbhūtā — rising up by the mountain torrents; girikandaravāsinām — of those dwelling in mountain caves; siṃhānāṃ — of the lions; ninadā — the roars; duḥkhāḥ — painful; śrotuṃ — to hear; duḥkham ato vanam — hence the forest is sorrow

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.