
Thereafter, Rama ordered his army to throw boulders in the ocean. Their general, Hanuman, eventually found Sita on the isle of Lanka. He eventually formed an alliance with a race of Varnaras (monkey-like people). Rama was beside himself with grief, but resolved to rescue his wife. Ravana, king of the Rakshasa race (man-eaters), heard of Sita’s beauty and kidnapped her. Despite the hardships, Rama actually enjoyed forest life, for it allowed him to keep company with the many sages and saints who lived there. His wife, Sita, and brother, Lakshmana, chose to go with him. The story tells of how Rama was cheated out of his throne and unfairly banished to the forest. They set fire to his tail, but he escaped and burned down much of the city. Ravana’s men subsequently captured Hanuman. Brief summary of the storyĪ painting of Hanuman shortly after finding Sita. The Ramayana is the subject of many art forms, particularly drama, and is increasingly well known outside the Hindu community. Tulsidas’s version is extremely popular, but is shorter than Valmiki’s, excluding the final chapter about Sita’s banishment, the birth of her twin sons, and her disappearance. There are two principal vernacular versions the Hindi Ramcharitmanas by Tulsidas and a Tamil version by Kambha.


Some date him back to the Treta-Yuga, whereas others consider him far more recent. Though academics consider the Ramayana a mythical account, Hindus consider Rama a historical figure, and an avatar of Vishnu. Indian scholars date Valmiki to the third millennium BCE. Scholars say that it received its present shape perhaps as late as the second century CE, but that it contains much older material. The Ramayana, “the Journey of Rama,” is a Sanskrit epic compiled by the poet-sage Valmiki.

Rama goes to catch the deer and Ravana kidnaps Sita. Sita becomes enchanted by a magician diguised as a deer.
