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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.60.6

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 60: Traces of Sītā’s abduction. Flowers, footprints, blood and chariot wreckage suggest a struggle, Rāma’s uncertainty turns to threats against the whole world

In the sequence: Rāma himself questions the river → the narrative says that the Godāvarī knows of the abduction but remains silent from fear of Rāvaṇa, despite other spirits urging it to speak

3.60.6

sa tām upasthito rāmaḥ kva sītety evam abravīt

Rāma, having reached it, said thus: “Where is Sītā?”

Words: sa — he; tām — it (the river); upasthito — having reached, standing near; rāmaḥ — Rāma; kva — where; sītety — ‘Sītā?’; evam — thus; abravīt — said

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.