Canto 1 - Boyhood
Bāla-kāṇḍa
Chapter 29: The History of Siddhāśrama
Text 1.29.1
अथ तस्याप्रमेयस्य तद्वनं परिपृच्छतः।
विश्वामित्रो महातेजा व्याख्यातुमुपचक्रमे॥
atha tasyāprameyasya tad vanaṁ paripṛcchataḥ
viśvāmitro mahā-tejā vyākhyātum upacakrame
atha tasya = that; aprameyasya = immeasurable; tat = about that Lord; vanam = forest; paripṛcchataḥ = when inquired; viśvāmitraḥ = Viśvāmitra; mahā-tejāḥ = of great prowess; vyākhyātum = to explain about it; upacakrame = began.
When that immeasurable Lord inquired about that forest, Viśvāmitra of great prowess began to explain about it.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead is eternally present in Siddhāśrama. Thus, it is a holy place. Because of the eternal presence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead there, ascetics in the past who had resided there had attained spiritual perfection. Therefore, one should reside in such a place where the Supreme Personality of Godhead eternally resides. Thus, Siddhāśrama is distinctly superior to Rudra’s āśrama that we came across earlier. This chapter discusses these points.
Lord Rāma is immeasurable—filled with inconceivable glory. He inquired about the forest like a human being who didn’t know about historical incidents [connected to that place].