What is the Ramayana? The story behind the film, in manga

The story in one minute

Rama is the eldest prince of Ayodhya. On the eve of his crowning, an old promise his father made sends him into the forest for fourteen years. His wife Sita and his brother Lakshmana go with him. In the forest, Ravana, the ten-headed demon king of Lanka, uses a golden deer to draw Rama away and carries Sita off into the sky. Searching for her, Rama swears friendship with the exiled monkey prince Sugriva and meets Hanuman, son of the wind god, who clears the sea to Lanka in a single leap.

Why it comes up at Diwali

In many parts of India, Diwali is tied to Rama's return home to Ayodhya after his exile and his victory over Ravana. Lamps are lit to welcome him back.

Who's who

• Rama The prince who loses a throne to keep his father's promise.
• Sita Rama's wife, daughter of the earth, carried off by Ravana.
• Lakshmana Rama's brother, who follows him into exile.
• Bharata The brother offered the throne, who sets Rama's sandals on it instead.
• Hanuman Son of the wind god, who has forgotten how strong he is.
• Ravana The ten-headed demon king of Lanka.
• Valmiki The poet who tells the story in our manga.

Read it: free episodes

Our manga is still being made. So far it runs from Rama's youth to Hanuman's leap to Lanka. The war and the road home are still to come.

Episode 1

The Boy Whose Arrow Was Too StrongRamayana: Bala Kanda (The Book of Youth)

A poet's grief over a slain bird becomes a song, and that song becomes the story of a prince. In Episode 1, young Rama leaves his father's side to travel with a stern sage, and learns for the first time how great his own power is, and how frightening.

19 pages

Episode 2

Whoever Draws the Bow Wins the BrideSita's Swayamvara (The Bow of Shiva)

No king could even lift the divine bow, yet young Prince Rama bows to his teacher and quietly draws it. A wedding to Sita, daughter of the earth, follows—but on the road home, an axe-bearing sage named Parashurama awaits with a trial of his own.

19 pages

Episode 3

Crowned Tomorrow, Exiled TonightThe Exile of Rama (Ayodhya Kanda)

Prince Rama is set to become heir to the throne tomorrow. But long ago his father promised two wishes to the woman who saved his life, and in a single night that promise sends Rama into the forest for fourteen years. No one hates him, yet he loses everything. This is a story about the weight of a promise and what it costs to keep one.

19 pages

Episode 4

The Brother Who Wouldn't Sit on the ThroneBharata and Rama's Sandals (Paduka)

Grieving for Rama, now exiled to the forest, King Dasharatha dies, still haunted by an arrow he loosed in his youth. Bharata is offered the throne. Instead, he marches with the whole army to bring his brother home. Rama refuses to break their father's promise, so the two brothers find another answer: Rama's sandals will sit on a throne that no one else will use.

19 pages

Episode 5

One Rejection. Fourteen Thousand Demons.Shurpanakha and Khara's Army (Aranya Kanda)

Rama vows to protect the sages of the forest. When he turns down a marriage proposal from the rakshasa princess Shurpanakha, an army of fourteen thousand rakshasas descends on him. Rama sends his wife and brother to safety in a cave and faces the horde alone.

19 pages

Episode 6

The Deer They Never Should Have ChasedThe Golden Deer and the Abduction of Sita

A golden deer far too beautiful to be real appears outside the forest hut, but it's a trap set by Ravana, the ten-headed demon king. One by one, love and kindness open the doors, and Sita is carried off into the sky. Only the aged bird king Jatayu rises alone to stop him.

19 pages

Episode 7

Before Sun Wukong, There Was HanumanHanuman Meets Rama (Kishkindha Kanda)

Searching for Sita, Rama and Lakshmana head south. Guided by the demon Kabandha and the old ascetic Shabari, they meet Hanuman, son of the wind god. Before a blazing fire, Rama swears friendship with Sugriva, an exiled prince of the monkey folk. But when Rama looses a single arrow to keep his promise, the dying King Vali makes him face what that arrow truly cost.

19 pages

Episode 8

The Hero Who Forgot His Own StrengthHanuman's Leap to Lanka (Sundara Kanda)

The deadline to find Sita has passed, and the southern search party sits hopeless on the shore of an endless sea—until Sampati, an old vulture with burned wings, appears. Hanuman has never believed in himself, but Jambavan, elder of the bears, reminds him of the power he was made to forget. With Rama's ring held close, Hanuman clears in a single leap a sea that would take even a bird days to cross.

19 pages

Questions

Is this the story of the film?

This manga is based on the ancient Sanskrit epic attributed to Valmiki, not on the film, and has no connection to the film or its makers. We can't say what the film changes or where it stops.

Is it really free?

Yes. Every episode is free to read with no sign-up. The site is supported by ads.

Do I need to know Indian mythology?

No. Episode 1 starts from the very beginning, and the story explains itself as it goes.

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