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    The Ramayana

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    Maria Fe Marasigan
    The Ramayana relates the story of two powerful kingdoms, the Kosalas and the Videhas. Rama, the eldest son of the Kosala king Dasa-ratha, wins the hand of Sita, the daughter of the Videha king Janak, in an archery contest. However, Kaikeyi, one of Dasa-ratha's wives, plots against Rama and convinces the king to exile Rama to the forest for 14 years. Sita and Rama's brother Lakshman accompany him into exile in the forest, where they build hermitages and wander, with their journey becoming an annual pilgrimage for many Indians today. When Dasa-

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    The Ramayana

    Uploaded by

    Maria Fe Marasigan
    175 views2 pages
    The Ramayana relates the story of two powerful kingdoms, the Kosalas and the Videhas. Rama, the eldest son of the Kosala king Dasa-ratha, wins the hand of Sita, the daughter of the Videha king Janak, in an archery contest. However, Kaikeyi, one of Dasa-ratha's wives, plots against Rama and convinces the king to exile Rama to the forest for 14 years. Sita and Rama's brother Lakshman accompany him into exile in the forest, where they build hermitages and wander, with their journey becoming an annual pilgrimage for many Indians today. When Dasa-

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    The Ramayana relates the story of two powerful kingdoms, the Kosalas and the Videhas. Rama, the eldest son of the Kosala king Dasa-ratha, wins the hand of Sita, the daughter of the Videha king Janak, in an archery contest. However, Kaikeyi, one of Dasa-ratha's wives, plots against Rama and convinces the king to exile Rama to the forest for 14 years. Sita and Rama's brother Lakshman accompany him into exile in the forest, where they build hermitages and wander, with their journey becoming an annual pilgrimage for many Indians today. When Dasa-

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    175 views2 pages

    The Ramayana

    Uploaded by

    Maria Fe Marasigan
    The Ramayana relates the story of two powerful kingdoms, the Kosalas and the Videhas. Rama, the eldest son of the Kosala king Dasa-ratha, wins the hand of Sita, the daughter of the Videha king Janak, in an archery contest. However, Kaikeyi, one of Dasa-ratha's wives, plots against Rama and convinces the king to exile Rama to the forest for 14 years. Sita and Rama's brother Lakshman accompany him into exile in the forest, where they build hermitages and wander, with their journey becoming an annual pilgrimage for many Indians today. When Dasa-

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
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    The Ramayana

    The Ramayana relates the story of two powerful races, the Kosalas and the
    Videhas. Dasa-ratha, the king of the Kosalas, had four sons, the oldest of whom,
    Rama, is the hero of the epic. The other sons were Bharat, Lakshman, and
    Satrughna. Janak, the king of Videhas had a daughter named Sita who was
    miraculously born of the earth and who is the heroine of the epic.
    Janak ordered a severe test, an archery contest, for the hand of his daughter.
    Suitors from the far and near tried their skill in archery but went away disappointed.
    Rama succeeded and won the peerless Sita for his wife. The brothers of Rama
    married a sister and cousin of Sita. The three brothers returned to Kosalas and were
    received joyfully by the people while preparations were made for the consecration
    of Rama as future king of the Kosalas.
    In the meantime, an intrigue developed in the place of king Dasa-ratha.
    Kaekeyi, the mother Bharat, became jelous of the honor conferred on Kausalya, the
    mother of Rama, and plotted against Rama. She went to the old king, Dasa-ratha,
    and reminded him of a certain promise he made her whwn he was ill that he
    excelled for fourteen years in the forest of Dandak and that her son Bharat be made
    regent king.
    The faithful wife, Sita, and the loving brother, Lakshman accompanied Rama
    in his exile while the loyal people of the city of Ayodia followed their exiled prince as
    far as the bans of the banks of the Tamasa River where they halted on the first
    night.
    Rama, his wife and Lakshman stole away at night to escape the citizens who
    wanted to follow them. Their wanderings during the following days, going deeper
    and deeper into forest, are described beautifully in the poem. (Three thousand
    years have passed but every step of this supposed journey is annually reenacted by
    thousands of devoted pilgrims in India. Rama and Sita still live in the hearts of
    millions of faithful men and women in this vast country.)
    Rama, his wife and his brother crossed the Ganges River, penetrating deeper
    into the wilderness of the forest until they came to the hermitage of Valmiki, the
    reputed author of the epic. The whole neighborhood of this hermitage is called
    Ramas country. Every headland has some legend; every cave is connected with
    Ramas name; some of the wild fruits are even called sita-phal because these fruits
    were the reputed food of the exiles. Thousands upon thousands of Indians visit this
    spot as a holy pilgrimage. Round the hill is a footpath up which the people walk with
    naked feet and with pious devotion.
    In Ayodia, Dasa-ratha grieved so much over banished Rama that he soon died. The
    story now moved to Bharat who refused the throne reserved for him. He joined
    Rama in the forest and implored him to return, stating that with his fathers death,

    surely Rama had been released from his sentence of exile. This is one of the most
    impressive parts of the epic. Rama told his brother that death did not release a
    sons promise to his father:
    But may, answered Rama, seek
    Ayodhas ancient throne,
    For righteous fathers mandate dutious
    Son may not disown;
    And I may not, gentle brother, break the
    Word of promise given,
    To a king and to a father who is now a saint in heaven!
    Bharat made a passionate plea for Rama to return and rule Kosala but all in vain.
    Bharat then took Ramas sandals to place them on the throne as testimony to the
    people that he was ruling in Ramas name. Rama then penetrated deeper into the
    Dandak forest so that his friends and relatives would not seek him in his exile.
    Rama wandered from Northern India and reached Southern India. He built his forest
    heritage in the wilderness that is now within a hundred of miles

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