Reading Diary A: Public Domain Ramayana

1. King Dasharatha

There are two kings, Dasharatha and Janaka. Dasharatha is broken-hearted because he has no sons and no heirs to his kingdom, despite him having many different wives. Another king, Janaka, has a beautiful daughter named Sita.

2. Dasharatha's Sons

Dasharatha is sick of having no sons, so he takes his wife, Kaushalya, and they complete a horse sacrifice to the gods. Brahmins chanted mantras during the sacred sacrifice. The gods grant him four sons instead of only one.

3. Rama: Avatar of Vishnu

Four of Dasharatha's wives who had eaten of the sacrificial food became pregnant with his four sons after the sacrifice. The most handsome son was Rama. The brahmin remarked how he had the markings of the god, Vishnu.

4. Sita

Rama travels with his brother, Lakshmana, and they make their way around the city. They stumbled into the king's garden, and this is when Rama first laid eyes on Sita. They instantly fell in love when their eyes met and it is said that they loved each other forever. Since Rama is an avatar of the god Vishnu and Sita is an avatar of the goddess Lakshmi, Vishnu's counterpart, they are destined for eternal love in every way.

5. Rama and Sita's Wedding

(Marriage of Rama and Sita, circa 1750; you can see all four couples: 

Rama and Sita, Laskhmana and Urmila, Bharata and Mandavi and Shatrughna and Shrutakirti)

This story is written in poetry. Line by line, the poetry reveals how decadent the wedding was for Rama and Sita and their siblings. It also has some powerful lines of poetry that are Rama's vows of love for Sita. Rama and Sita are married in this story, but they share the wedding festivities with Rama's three brothers and Sita's three sisters.

Public Domain Ramayana

I enjoyed the five stories that I listed above the most out of the Ramayana because of their powerful writing. These are the deepest cultural tales I have read out of the Ramayana. I enjoyed learning about the different perspectives of the characters as well as the interesting pictures that were included.