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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.25.7
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 explains that they will sleep on leaves on the ground, wear bark and matted hair, observe fasts, and face hunger, darkness, and harsh winds
2.25.7
supyate parṇaśayyāsu svayaṃ bhagnāsu bhūtale
rātriṣu śramakhinnena tasmād duḥkhataraṃ vanam
One must sleep at night, worn out with toil, on beds of leaves broken off by oneself, upon the bare ground; therefore the forest is more painful still.
Words: supyate — one sleeps; parṇaśayyāsu — on beds of leaves; svayaṃ bhagnāsu — broken off by oneself; bhūtale — on the ground; rātriṣu — at nights; śramakhinnena — by one worn out with toil; tasmād duḥkhataraṃ vanam — therefore the forest is more painful
Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki. 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.