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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.57.6

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: he says that people reap the consequences of their actions and that acting without considering the result has brought him to this point.

2.57.6

kaś cid āmravaṇaṃ chittvā palāśāṃś ca niṣiñcati
puṣpaṃ dṛṣṭvā phale gṛdhnuḥ sa śocati phalāgame

Someone, having cut down a mango grove, waters palāśa trees; greedy for fruit at the sight of blossom, he grieves when the fruiting time comes.

Words: kaś cid — someone; āmravaṇaṃ — a mango grove; chittvā — having cut down; palāśāṃś ca — and palāśa trees; niṣiñcati — waters, irrigates; puṣpaṃ — blossom, flower; dṛṣṭvā — having seen; phale — in the fruit; gṛdhnuḥ — greedy; sa — he; śocati — grieves; phalāgame — when the fruit comes

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.