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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.57.17

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 57: Daśaratha’s arrow aimed at a sound. He recalls mistaking a filling pot for an elephant and shooting a youth who directs him to his blind parents

In the sequence: waiting in darkness for an animal to drink, he heard a pot filling with water → mistaking the sound for an elephant, he shot without seeing his target

2.57.17

tato 'haṃ śaram uddhṛtya dīptam āśīviṣopamam
amuñcaṃ niśitaṃ bāṇam aham āśīviṣopamam

Then, drawing forth a blazing arrow like a venomous serpent, I loosed the sharp shaft — I, myself like a venomous serpent.

Words: tato — then; 'haṃ — I; śaram — an arrow; uddhṛtya — having drawn forth; dīptam — blazing; āśīviṣopamam — like a venomous serpent; amuñcaṃ — I released; niśitaṃ — sharp, whetted; bāṇam — the shaft, arrow; aham — I; āśīviṣopamam — like a venomous serpent

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.