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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.55.4

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 55: Rāma meets Lakṣmaṇa. Omens and the false cry make him fear a plot against Sītā, he reproaches Lakṣmaṇa for leaving her alone

In the sequence: he fears for Sītā and anticipates exactly how the deception may work—she may send Lakṣmaṇa away after hearing the imitation of his voice

3.55.4

aśubhaṃ bata manye 'haṃ gomāyur vāśyate yathā
svasti syād api vaidehyā rākṣasair bhakṣaṇaṃ vinā

"Alas, I think it bodes ill, the way the jackal howls; may it be well with Vaidehī, spared from being devoured by the rākṣasas."

Words: aśubhaṃ — something inauspicious; bata — alas; manye — I think; 'haṃ — I; gomāyur — the jackal; vāśyate — howls; yathā — the way that; svasti — well-being; syād — may it be; api — surely; vaidehyā — with Vaidehī; rākṣasair — by the rākṣasas; bhakṣaṇaṃ — being devoured; vinā — without, spared from

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.