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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.34.21
Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 34: Rāvaṇa’s abduction plan. Mārīca must become a golden deer to lure the brothers away, leaving Sītā unguarded and Rāma vulnerable to grief
In the sequence: hearing Rāma's name and this proposal terrifies Mārīca, who prepares to give unwelcome but protective advice.
3.34.21
tasya rāmakathāṃ śrutvā mārīcasya mahātmanaḥ
śuṣkaṃ samabhavad vaktraṃ paritrasto babhūva ca
On hearing that talk about Rāma, the mouth of the great-souled Mārīca went dry, and he was seized with terror.
Words: tasya — his (Mārīca's); rāmakathāṃ — the talk of Rāma; śrutvā — having heard; mārīcasya — of Mārīca; mahātmanaḥ — the great-souled; śuṣkaṃ — dry; samabhavad — became; vaktraṃ — mouth, face; paritrasto — terrified; babhūva ca — and became
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.