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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.22.10

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 22: Omens on Khara’s march. Blood-coloured rain, darkness and bodily tremors warn of disaster, Khara dismisses them and advances with his leading warriors

In the sequence: predators cry, darkness spreads before twilight, jackals howl, the sun is obscured, and stars appear by day

3.22.10

nityāśivakarā yuddhe śivā ghoranidarśanāḥ
nedur balasyābhimukhaṃ jvālodgāribhir ānanaiḥ

Jackals, ever bringers of ill fortune in battle, dreadful in aspect, howled facing the army, with flames pouring from their mouths.

Words: nityāśivakarā — ever bringers of ill fortune; yuddhe — in battle; śivā — jackals; ghoranidarśanāḥ — dreadful in aspect; nedur — howled; balasyābhimukhaṃ — facing the army; jvālodgāribhir — pouring forth flames; ānanaiḥ — with (their) mouths

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.