Having got fed up reading fictions,
I decided to go for a change. That’s why I decided to read epic stories. To be
frank, now I am an epic fan! The credit goes to the famous author R.K
Narayanan, whose book;’ The Ramayana’ has fascinated me to a large extent. His
way of writing is simple and at the same time highly captivating. I just did
not eel like keeping the book down, once I started reading it.
Dasaratha was a happy going king
who ruled the country named Kosala. The king was unfortunate as he was not
blessed with any children. Then it was his minister Vasishtha who was wise
enough to come up with Sage Rishya Sringa’s name. The sage performed a yagna
and the offering that he got was divided among Dasaratha’s three wives- Kausalya,
Kaikeyi and Sumithra. Kausalya and Kaikeyi gave birth to Rama and Bharatha
respectively, and Sumithra gave birth to Lakshmana and Sathrugna. Rama was
loved by everyone because of his kind behaviour and attitude. Rama was married
to Sita- Janaka’s beautiful daughter. Now it was the time to choose Dasaratha’s
successor. Being the eldest, the vote fell on Rama. But alas! Kaikeyi wanted
her son Bharatha to become the king (Thanks to Manthara’s intervention!!) and
she wanted Rama to be sent on exile for 14 years. Obediently, Rama followed his
parents’ orders. He was accompanied by Sita and Lakshmana.
During his ‘vanvasa’ he destroyed
many rakshasas. One among them was Shoorpanaka, Ravana the ten headed king’s
sister. Ravana couldn’t stand it. He tried to kill Rama, in many ways but he
was unsuccessful. Then he came to know o of the beautiful Sita. He was so lost
in her beauty that he captured her and brought her to Lanka. On hearing this
Rama became furious. He wanted to kill Ravana, but he did not know how to cross
Lanka. During this time Rama, along with Lakshmana, came through the kingdom of
the monkeys-Kiskinda. Rama became their hero, as he was victorious against Vali,
who everyone hated because of his harshness. In the meanwhile, Hanuman went to
Lanka and gifted Rama’s ring to Sita. On his way back, he was captured by the
soldiers of Ravana, who lit Hanuman’s tail. With the lit tail, he set the whole
Lanka on fire.
Later Rama decided to cross Lanka
with the help of the monkeys. They were successful in reaching Lanka by
building a bridge across the water. The fierce fight between Rama and Ravana
continued for days. Rama was declared the winner as he defeated Ravana by
shooting an arrow into his heart. By then the 14 year span was over. Rama, Sita
and Lakshmana set back on their journey to Ayodhya. They were welcomed with
celebrations and cheers.
It was hard to choose my
favourite character from the long list. Even Ravana has got nobility in him. I
like Lakshmana the most as he was an ideal brother. He sacrificed his own comforts
for the sake of his brother. He supported him during his hardships. He helped
him to destroy all the Rakshas. He worshipped his brother as God Almighty. Such
siblings are rare to find in the present day.
A reminder to those who haven’t
read the Ramayana- this is the right time to start reading it! I can assure you
that you will surely enjoy it from the start to the end. So stop waiting and go
grab the book right now. In fact I am waiting to read ‘The Mahabharata’ next.
K.Shweta Sasidharan
X-B
4422
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