Canto 3 -
Araṇya-kāṇḍa
Chapter 11: Rāma Goes to Agastya’s Āśrama
Text 3.11.80
स्निग्धपत्रा यथा वृक्षा यथा क्षान्ता मृगद्विजाः।
आश्रमो नातिदूरस्थो महर्षेर्भावितात्मनः॥
snigdha-patrā yathā vṛkṣā yathā kṣāntā mṛga-dvijāḥ
āśramo nātidūrastho maha-rṣer bhāvitātmanaḥ
snigdha-patrāḥ = have moist leaves; yathā = because; vṛkṣāḥ = the trees [here]; yathā = [and] because; kṣāntāḥ = are peaceful; mṛga-dvijāḥ = the animals and birds; āśramaḥ = the āśrama; na = not; atidūrasthaḥ = is very far [from here]; mahā-ṛṣeḥ = of the great sage; bhāvita-ātmanaḥ = meditating on the Supreme Soul.
Because the trees [here] have moist leaves [and] because the animals and birds are peaceful, the āśrama of the great sage meditating on the Supreme Soul is not very far [from here].
The leaves were moist because [the trees] were protected by āśrama residents. Śrī Rāma considered that the āśrama was not far because the trees had moist leaves and the animals and birds were peaceful.