← 3.57.24 · Araṇya Kāṇḍa 57: Lakṣmaṇa explains his departure

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.57.25

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 57: Lakṣmaṇa explains his departure. He recounts Sītā’s accusations after the false cry, Rāma insists that her harsh words should not have overridden his order

In the sequence: he confirms that the deer was a rākṣasa who revealed his real form and imitated his voice while dying.

3.57.25

śarāhatenaiva tadārtayā girā svaraṃ mamālambya sudūrasaṃśravam
udāhṛtaṃ tad vacanaṃ sudāruṇaṃ tvam āgato yena vihāya maithilīm

Struck by the arrow, in an anguished voice, taking on my voice so as to be heard far off, he uttered that most terrible cry—on account of which you came, leaving Maithilī behind.

Words: śarāhatenaiva — by (him) struck with an arrow; tadārtayā — then, in an anguished (voice); girā — with voice, speech; svaraṃ — voice; mamālambya — having taken on my (voice); sudūrasaṃśravam — audible very far off; udāhṛtaṃ — was uttered; tad — that; vacanaṃ — word, cry; sudāruṇaṃ — most terrible; tvam — you; āgato — came; yena — on account of which; vihāya — leaving behind; maithilīm — Maithilī

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.