Canto 3 -
Araṇya-kāṇḍa
Chapter 31: Rāvaṇa’s Conversation with Akampana and Mārīca
Text 3.31.44
आशीविषमुखाद्दंष्ट्रामुद्धर्तुं चेच्छति त्वया।
कर्मणा तेन केनासि कापथं प्रतिपादितः॥
āśīviṣa-mukhād daṁṣṭrām uddhartuṁ cecchati tvayā
karmaṇā tena kenāsi kāpathaṁ pratipāditaḥ
āśīviṣa-mukhāt = from the mouth of a snake; daṁṣṭrām = a fang; uddhartum ca = to extract; icchati = who wants; tvayā = to use you; karmaṇā = act; tena = through this; kena = who; asi = you; kāpatham = on this wrong path; pratipāditaḥ = has set.
Who wants to use you to extract a fang from the mouth of a snake? Who has set you on this wrong path through this act?
Āśīviṣa-mukhāt (“from the mouth of a snake”) refers to a particular type of snake [known as āśīviṣa].
“[Who has set you on a wrong path] through this act?” refers to the act of stealing Sītā-devī.
In some manuscripts, karmaṇā kena kenāsi appears instead of karmaṇā tena kenāsi indicating that Mārīca wanted to know from Rāvaṇa who had set him on this wrong path and through which means.