Canto 3 -
Araṇya-kāṇḍa
Chapter 7: Rāma Meets Sutīkṣṇa
Text 3.7.2
स गत्वाऽदूरमध्वानं नदीस्तीर्त्वा बहूदकाः।
ददर्श विपुलं शैलं महामेघमिवोन्नतम्॥
sa gatvādūram adhvānaṁ nadīs tīrtvā bahūdakāḥ
dadarśa vipulaṁ śailaṁ mahā-megham ivonnatam
saḥ = He; gatvā = went; adūram = by a short; adhvānam = path; nadīḥ = rivers; tīrtvā = crossed; bahu-udakāḥ = with extensive water in them; dadarśa = and [then] saw; vipulam = a large; śailam = and rocky forest; mahā-megham = a great cloud; iva = that resembled; unnatam = elevated.
He went by a short path, crossed rivers with extensive water in them and [then] saw a large, elevated and rocky forest that resembled a great cloud.
The path was short. Śarabhaṅga had told [Rāma] that Sutīkṣṇa’s āśrama was not far in text 3.5.35.
The “rivers” were [streams] of the one Mandākinī that flowed in many areas. Their water was extensive [and shallow], for there is no mention of [Rāma and others] having crossed them using boats.
Śailam [which can mean “mountain”] indicates that they saw a rocky forest because the next verse will state [that they entered] a forest.1 That forest has been compared to a great cloud because it was dark.
GLOSS. [The glossator reads mahā-merum instead of mahā-megham indicating that] Lord Rāma saw a mountain [near the forest] that resembled the great Meru. Unnatam indicates that [the mountain] was filled with the sounds of several birds.2