Canto 1 - Boyhood
Bāla-kāṇḍa
Chapter 23: The History of Kāmāśrama
Text 1.23.9
तयोस्तद्वचनं श्रुत्वा प्रहस्य मुनिपुङ्गवः।
अब्रवीच्छ्रूयतां राम यस्यायं पूर्व आश्रमः॥
tayos tad vacanaṁ śrutvā prahasya muni-puṅgavaḥ
abravīc chrūyatāṁ rāma yasyāyaṁ pūrva āśramaḥ
tayoḥ = Their; tat vacanam = words; śrutvā = hearing; prahasya = laughed and; muni-puṅgavaḥ = the best of the sages; abravīt = said; śrūyatāṁ = hear [from me]; rāma = Rāma; yasya = about the person who possessed; ayam = this; pūrvaḥ = the past; āśramaḥ = āśrama.
Hearing Their words, the best of the sages laughed and said: Rāma, hear [from me] about the person who possessed this āśrama in the past.
The sage laughed on noticing the sweetness of the questions posed by Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa because They acted just like human beings. Because Rāma was elder among the two brothers, Viśvāmitra addressed Him.