One of our most loved princes
joins us….
The Ramayana is traditionally divided into
several major kāndas or books, that deal chronologically
with the major events in the life of Rama—Bāla Kānda, Ayodhya
Kānda, Aranya
Kānda, Kishkindha Kānda, Sundara
Kānda, Yuddha
Kānda, and Uttara
Kānda. The Bala Kanda describes the birth of Rama, his childhood
and marriage to Sita. The Ayodhya Kanda describes the preparations for
Rama's coronation and his exile into the forest. The third part, Aranya
Kanda, describes the forest life of Rama and the kidnapping of Sita by the
demon king Ravana. The fourth book, Kishkindha Kanda, describes the
meeting of Hanuman with Rama, the destruction of the vanara king Vali and the coronation of his younger
brother Sugriva to the throne of the kingdom of Kishkindha. The fifth
book is Sundara Kanda, which narrates the heroism of Hanuman, his flight
to Lanka and meeting with Sita. The sixth book, Yuddha Kanda, describes
the battle between Rama's and Ravana's armies. The last book, Uttara Kanda,
describes the birth of Lava and Kusha to Sita, their coronation to the throne
of Ayodhya, and Rama's final departure from the world.
Dasharatha
was the king of Kosala,
the capital of which was the city of Ayodhya.
He had three queens: Kausalya, Kaikeyi and Sumitra. He was childless for a long
time and, anxious to produce an heir, he performs a fire sacrifice known as Putra-Kameshti
Yagya. As a consequence, Rama is first born to Kausalya, Bharata is born to
Kaikeyi, and Sumitra gives birth to twins named Lakshmana and Shatrughna. These
sons are endowed, to various degrees, with the essence of the God Vishnu;
Vishnu had opted to be born into mortality in order to combat the demon Ravana,
who was oppressing the Gods, and who could only be destroyed by a mortal. The
boys are reared as the princes of the realm, receiving instructions from the
scriptures and in warfare. When Rama is 16 years old, the sage Vishwamitra
comes to the court of Dasharatha in search of help against demons, who were
disturbing sacrificial rites. He chooses Rama, who is followed by Lakshmana,
his constant companion throughout the story. Rama and Lakshmana receive
instructions and supernatural weapons from Vishwamitra, and proceed to destroy
the demons.
Janaka
was the king of Mithila. One day, a female
child was found in the field by the king in the deep furrow dug by his plough.
Overwhelmed with joy, the king regarded the child as a "miraculous gift of
God". The child was named Sita, the Sanskrit word for furrow. Sita grew up
to be a girl of unparalleled beauty and charm. When Sita was of marriageable
age, the king decided to have a swayamvara
which included a contest. The king was in possession of an immensely heavy bow,
presented to him by the God Shiva: whoever could wield the bow could marry
Sita. The sage Vishwamitra attends the swayamvara with Rama and
Lakshmana. Only Rama wields the bow and breaks it. Marriages are arranged
between the sons of Dasharatha and daughters, nieces of Janaka. The weddings
are celebrated with great festivity at Mithila and the marriage party returns
to Ayodhya.
After
Rama and Sita have been married for twelve years, Dasharatha who had grown old
expresses his desire to crown Rama, to which the Kosala assembly and his
subjects express their support. On the eve of the great event, Kaikeyi—her
jealousy aroused by Manthara, a wicked
maidservant—claims two boons that Dasharatha had long ago granted her. Kaikeyi
demands Rama to be exiled into wilderness for fourteen years, while the
succession passes to her son Bharata. The heartbroken king, constrained by his
rigid devotion to his given word, accedes to Kaikeyi's demands. Rama accepts his father's
reluctant decree with absolute submission and calm self-control which
characterizes him throughout the story. He is joined by Sita and Lakshmana.
When he asks Sita not to follow him, she says, "the forest where you dwell
is Ayodhya for me and Ayodhya without you is a veritable hell for me." After
Rama's departure, King Dasharatha, unable to bear the grief, passes away. Meanwhile,
Bharata who was on a visit to his maternal uncle, learns about the events in
Ayodhya. Bharata refuses to profit from his mother's wicked scheming and visits
Rama in the forest. He requests Rama to return and rule. But Rama, determined
to carry out his father's orders to the letter, refuses to return before the
period of exile. However, Bharata carries Rama's sandals, and keeps them on the
throne, while he rules as Rama's regent.
Rama,
Sita and Lakshmana journeyed southward along the banks of river Godavari,
where they built cottages and lived off the land. At the Panchavati
forest they are visited by a rakshasa
woman, Surpanakha, the sister of
Ravana. She attempts to seduce the brothers and, failing in this, attempts to
kill Sita. Lakshmana stops her by cutting off her nose and ears. Hearing of
this, her demon brother, Khara, organizes an attack against the
princes. Rama annihilates Khara and his demons.
When
news of these events reaches Ravana, he resolves to destroy Rama by capturing
Sita with the aid of the rakshasa Maricha.
Maricha, assuming the form of a golden deer, captivates Sita's attention.
Entranced by the beauty of the deer, Sita pleads with Rama to capture it. Rama,
aware that this is the play of the demons, is unable to dissuade Sita from her
desire and chases the deer into the forest, leaving Sita under Lakshmana's
guard. After some time Sita hears Rama calling out to her; afraid for his life
she insists that Lakshmana rush to his aid. Lakshmana tries to assure her that
Rama is invincible, and that it is best if he continues to follow Rama's orders
to protect her. On the verge of hysterics Sita insists that it is not she but
Rama who needs Lakshmana's help. He obeys her wish but stipulates that she is
not to leave the cottage or entertain any strangers. Finally with the coast
clear, Ravana appears in the guise of an ascetic requesting Sita's hospitality.
Unaware of the devious plan of her guest, Sita is then forcibly carried away by
the evil Ravana.
Jatayu,
a vulture, tries to rescue Sita, but is mortally wounded. At Lanka, Sita is
kept under the heavy guard of rakshasis. Ravana demands Sita marry him,
but Sita, eternally devoted to Rama, refuses. Rama and Lakshmana learn about
Sita's abduction from Jatayu, and immediately set out to save her. During their search, they meet the
demon Kabandha
and the ascetic Shabari, who direct them
towards Sugriva and Hanuman.
The
Kishkindha Kanda is set in the monkey citadel Kishkindha.
Rama and Lakshmana meet Hanuman, the greatest of monkey heroes and an adherent
of Sugriva,
the banished pretender to the throne of Kishkindha. Rama befriends Sugriva and
helps him by killing his elder brother Vali
thus regaining the kingdom of Kiskindha, in exchange for helping Rama to
recover Sita. However Sugriva soon forgets his promise and spends his time in
debauchery. The clever monkey Queen, Tara,
calmly intervenes to prevent an enraged Lakshmana from destroying the monkey
citadel. She then eloquently convinces Sugriva to honor his pledge. Sugriva
then sends search parties to the four corners of the earth, only to return
without success from north, east and west. The southern search party under the
leadership of Angad
and Hanuman learns from a vulture named Sampati
that Sita was taken to Lanka.
The
Sundara Kanda forms the heart of Valmiki's Ramayana and consists
of a detailed, vivid account of Hanuman's
adventures. After learning about Sita, Hanuman assumes
a gargantuan form and makes a colossal leap across the ocean to Lanka. Here,
Hanuman explores the demon's city and spies on Ravana. He locates Sita in
Ashoka grove, who is wooed and threatened by Ravana and his rakshasis to
marry Ravana. He reassures her, giving Rama's signet ring as a sign of good
faith. He offers to carry Sita back to Rama, however she refuses, reluctant to
allow herself to be touched by a male other than her husband. She says that
Rama himself must come and avenge the insult of her abduction.
Hanuman
then wreaks havoc in Lanka by destroying trees and buildings, and killing
Ravana's warriors. He allows himself to be captured and produced before Ravana.
He gives a bold lecture to Ravana to release Sita. He is condemned and his tail
is set on fire, but he escapes his bonds and, leaping from roof to roof, sets
fire to Ravana's citadel and makes the giant leap back from the island. The
joyous search party returns to Kishkindha with the news.
Having
received Hanuman's report on Sita, Rama and Lakshmana proceed with their allies
towards the shore of the southern sea. There they are joined by Ravana's
renegade brother Vibhishana. The monkeys named
"Nal" and "Neel"
construct a floating bridge (known as Rama Setu)
across the ocean, and the princes and their army cross over to Lanka. A lengthy
battle ensues and Rama kills Ravana. Rama then installs Vibhishana on the
throne of Lanka.
On
meeting Sita, Rama asks her to undergo agni Pariksha (test of fire) to
prove her purity, since she had stayed at the demon's palace. When Sita plunges
into the sacrificial fire, Agni
the lord of fire raises Sita, unharmed, to the throne, attesting to her purity.
The episode of agni pariksha varies in the versions of Ramayana by
Valmiki and Tulsidas. The above version
is from Valmiki Ramayana. In Tulsidas's
Ramacharitamanas Sita was under the
protection of Agni
so it was necessary to bring her out before reuniting with Rama.
At the expiration of his term of exile, Rama returns to Ayodhya with Sita and Lakshmana,
where the coronation is performed. This is the beginning of Ram Rajya, which
implies an ideal state with good morals. It is a place where all religions,
creeds and castes can live together in harmony and work towards progress
together. Ram Rajya is the ultimate state of a true democracy where through
unity one gains strength and protects the other as humanity is the greatest
essence above all. Gambling, drinking and hunting were commonly condemned in
Ram Rajya.
The
Uttara Kanda concerns the final years of Rama, Sita, and Rama's
brothers. After being crowned king, many years passed pleasantly with Sita.
However, despite the agni pariksha (fire ordeal) of Sita, rumors about
her purity are spreading among the populace of Ayodhya. Rama yields to public
opinion and banishes Sita to the forest, where the sage Valmiki provides
shelter in his ashrama (hermitage). Here she gives birth to twin boys,
Lava and Kusha, who became pupils of Valmiki and are brought up in ignorance of
their identity.
Valmiki
composes the Ramayana and teaches Lava and Kusha to sing it. Later, Rama holds
a ceremony during Ashwamedha yagna,
which the sage Valmiki, with Lava and Kusha, attends. Lava and Kusha sing the
Ramayana in the presence of Rama and his vast audience. When Lava and Kusha
recite about Sita's exile, Rama becomes grievous, and Valmiki produces Sita.
Sita calls upon the Earth, her mother, to receive her and as the ground opens,
she vanishes into it. Rama then learns that Lava and Kusha are his children.
Later a messenger from the Gods appears and informs Rama that the mission of
his incarnation was over. Rama returns to his celestial abode. The Uttara
Kanda is regarded to be a later addition to the original story by Valmiki.
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