कस्यायमाश्रमः पुण्यः को न्वस्मिन्वसते पुमान् । भगवञ्श्रोतुमिच्छावः परं कौतूहलं हि नौ ॥१-२३-
Whose is this sacred hermitage? Who dwells here, O revered one? We wish to hear, for our curiosity is indeed great.
तयोस्तद्वचनं श्रुत्वा प्रहस्य मुनिपुङ्गवः । अब्रवीच्छ्रूयतां राम यस्यायं पूर्व आश्रमः ॥१-२३-
Hearing their words, the foremost among sages smiled and said, 'Listen, Rama, to whom this ancient hermitage belonged.'
कन्दर्पो मूर्तिमानासीत्काम इत्युच्यते बुधैः । तपस्यन्तमिह स्थाणुं नियमेन समाहितम् ॥१-२३-
Kāma, the embodied god of love, so called by the wise, once saw Śiva here engaged in austere penance, steadfast in discipline.
कृतोद्वाहं तु देवेशं गच्छन्तं समरुद्गणम् । धर्षयामास दुर्मेधा हुंकृतश्च महात्मना ॥१-२३-
But when the Lord of the gods, newly wed, was proceeding with the hosts of Maruts, that evil-minded one dared to disturb him, and was rebuked by the great-souled one.
अवध्यातश्च रुद्रेण चक्षुषा रघुनन्दन । व्यशीर्यन्त शरीरात् स्वात् सर्वगात्राणि दुर्मतेः ॥१-२३-
O descendant of Raghu, then Rudra struck him down with a glance, and all the limbs of that wicked one were shattered from his body.
तस्य गात्रं हतं तत्र निर्दग्धस्य महात्मना । अशरीरः कृतः कामः क्रोधाद् देवेश्वरेण ह ॥१-२३-
There, his body destroyed and consumed by the great-souled Lord of the gods in anger, Kāma was rendered bodiless.
अनङ्ग इति विख्यातस्तदा प्रभृति राघव । स चाङ्गविषयः श्रीमान् यत्राङ्गं स मुमोच ह ॥१-२३-
From that time onward, O Rāghava, he became known as Anaṅga, the bodiless one, and the place where his body fell is called Aṅgaviṣaya, the blessed region.
तस्यायमाश्रमः पुण्यस्तस्येमे मुनयः पुरा । शिष्या धर्मपरा वीर तेषां पापं न विद्यते ॥१-२३-
This is the sacred hermitage of that one, and these are his ancient disciples, O hero, devoted to righteousness; among them, no sin is found.
इहाद्य रजनीं राम वसेम शुभदर्शन । पुण्ययोः सरितोर्मध्ये श्वस्तरिष्यामहे वयम् ॥१-२३-
Let us spend the night here today, O Rāma of auspicious vision, between these two holy rivers; tomorrow we shall cross over.
अभिगच्छामहे सर्वे शुचयः पुण्यमाश्रमम् । इह वासः परोऽस्माकं सुखं वस्त्यामहे निशाम् ॥१-२३-
Let us all, pure in mind, approach this sacred hermitage; here our stay will be most excellent, and we shall pass the night in comfort.
स्नाताश्च कृतजप्याश्च हुतहव्या नरोत्तम । तेषां संवदतां तत्र तपोदीर्घेण चक्षुषा ॥१-२३-
Having bathed, performed their recitations, and offered oblations, O best of men, as they conversed there, the ascetics gazed upon them with eyes long practiced in austerity.
विज्ञाय परमप्रीता मुनयो हर्षमागमन् । अर्घ्यं पाद्यं तथाऽऽतिथ्यं निवेद्य कुशिकात्मजे ॥१-२३-
Recognizing them, the sages, filled with supreme joy, approached with delight and offered water for washing feet, water for welcome, and hospitality to the son of Kuśika.
रामलक्ष्मणयोः पश्चादकुर्वन्नतिथिक्रियाम् । सत्कारं समनुप्राप्य कथाभिरभिरञ्जयन् ॥१-२३-
Afterwards, they performed the rites of hospitality for Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa, and having received due honor, they delighted them with pleasant stories.
यथार्हमजपन् संध्यामृषयस्ते समाहिताः । तत्र वासिभिरानीता मुनिभिः सुव्रतैः सह ॥१-२३-
Then, as was proper, those focused sages performed the evening prayers, joined by the resident ascetics and those of virtuous vows.
न्यवसन् सुसुखं तत्र कामाश्रमपदे तथा । कथाभिरभिरामभिरभिरमौ नृपात्मजौ । रमयामास धर्मात्मा कौशिको मुनिपुङ्गवः ॥१-२३-
There, in the hermitage of Kāma, they dwelt most happily; the sage Kauśika, righteous and foremost among ascetics, entertained the princes with delightful tales.
thumb|चतुर्विंशः सर्गः श्रूयताम्|center श्रीमद्वाल्मीकियरामायणे बालकाण्डे चतुर्विंशः सर्गः ॥१-
This is the twenty-fourth chapter. Listen.
ततः प्रभाते विमले कृताह्निकमरिन्दमौ । विश्वामित्रं पुरस्कृत्य नद्यास्तीरमुपागतौ ॥१-२४-
Then, at dawn, when the day was clear, the two destroyers of enemies, having completed their morning rites, approached the riverbank with Viśvāmitra leading.
ते च सर्वे महात्मानो मुनयः संशितव्रताः । उपस्थाप्य शुभां नावं विश्वामित्रमथाब्रुवन् ॥१-२४-
And all those great-souled sages, firm in their vows, prepared a fine boat and spoke to Viśvāmitra.
आरोहतु भवान् नावं राजपुत्रपुरस्कृतः । अरिष्टं गच्छ पन्थानं मा भूत् कालस्य पर्ययः ॥१-२४-
"Please board the boat, with the princes at the forefront; travel safely and let there be no delay caused by time."
विश्वामित्रस्तथेत्युक्त्वा तानृषीन् प्रतिपूज्य च । ततार सहितस्ताभ्यां सरितं सागरङ्गमाम् ॥१-२४-
Viśvāmitra, having agreed and honored those sages, crossed the river that flows to the ocean, together with the two princes.
तत्र शुश्राव वै शब्दं तोयसंरम्भवर्धितम् । मध्यमागम्य तोयस्य तस्य शब्दस्य निश्चयम् ॥१-२४-
There, he heard a sound, intensified by the agitation of the water; coming to the middle of the stream, he sought to ascertain the source of that sound.
ज्ञातुकामो महातेजाः सह रामः कनीयसा । अथ रामः सरिन्मध्ये पप्रच्छ मुनिपुङ्गवम् ॥१-२४-
Desiring to know, the mighty one, together with Rama and his younger brother, then, in the midst of the river, Rama questioned the eminent sage.
वारिणो भिद्यमानस्य किमयं तुमुलो ध्वनिः । राघवस्य वचः श्रुत्वा कौतूहलसमन्वितम् ॥१-२४-
What is this tumultuous noise of the water breaking apart? Hearing Raghava's words, filled with curiosity—
कथयामास धर्मात्मा तस्य शब्दस्य निश्चयम् । कैलासपर्वते राम मनसा निर्मितं परम् ॥१-२४-
The righteous sage began to explain the origin of that sound: 'On Mount Kailasa, Rama, a supreme lake was created by the mind.'
ब्रह्मणा नरशार्दूल तेनेदं मानसं सरः । तस्मात् सुस्राव सरसः सायोध्यामुपगूहते ॥१-२४-
'By Brahma, O tiger among men, this Mānasa lake was formed; from it, the river flowed forth and approaches Ayodhya.'
सरःप्रवृत्ता सरयूः पुण्या ब्रह्मसरश्च्युता । तस्यायमतुलः शब्दो जाह्नवीमभिवर्तते ॥१-२४-
'The sacred Sarayu, originating from the lake, sprung from Brahma's lake; this incomparable sound of hers reaches the Jahnavi.'
वारिसंक्षोभजो राम प्रणामं नियतः कुरु । ताभ्यां तु तावुभौ कृत्वा प्रणाममतिधार्मिकौ ॥१-२४-
'Born from the disturbance of the waters, Rama, offer your respectful salutation.' Then, both of them, exceedingly righteous, made their salutations.
तीरं दक्षिणमासाद्य जग्मतुर्लघुविक्रमौ । स वनं घोरसंकाशं दृष्ट्वा नरवरात्मजः ॥१-२४-
Having reached the southern bank, the two, swift in movement, proceeded; seeing a forest of terrifying appearance, the son of the foremost of men—
अविप्रहतमैक्ष्वाकः पप्रच्छ मुनिपुङ्गवम् । अहो वनमिदं दुर्गं झिल्लिकागणसंयुतम् ॥१-२४-
The descendant of Ikshvaku, unvanquished, questioned the eminent sage: 'Ah, this forest is formidable, filled with multitudes of crickets.'
भैरवैः श्वापदैः कीर्णं शकुन्तैर्दारुणारवैः । नानाप्रकारैः शकुनैर्वाश्यद्भिर्भैरवस्वनैः ॥१-२४-
'It is crowded with fearsome beasts and birds with harsh cries; with various kinds of birds, shrieking with dreadful sounds.'