Shri Ram

Birth and family

1. Shri Ram is described as the eldest son of King Dasharatha of Ayodhya and Queen Kaushalya, born in the Ikshvaku (Raghu) dynasty in the kingdom of Kosala.
2. He is widely regarded as the seventh avatar of Lord Vishnu, incarnated to restore dharma and defeat the demon king Ravana.
3. His brothers are Bharata, Lakshmana, and Shatrughna, all of whom play important roles in the Ramayana narrative and exemplify brotherly love and loyalty.

Youth and marriage

1. As a prince, Ram is trained in scriptures, ethics, warfare, and archery, and is portrayed as gentle, disciplined, and extraordinarily skilled with the bow.
2. The sage Vishvamitra takes Ram (with Lakshmana) to protect his sacrificial rituals from demons, where Ram displays his prowess by defeating powerful rakshasas.
3. In King Janaka’s court at Mithila, Ram strings and breaks the great bow of Shiva, winning the hand of Sita, who is honored as an ideal of purity, devotion, and strength.

Exile and forest life

1. When Dasharatha plans to crown Ram as king, Queen Kaikeyi invokes two boons: that Bharata be made king and Ram be exiled to the forest for 14 years, which Ram accepts without resistance to uphold his father’s honor.
2. Sita and Lakshmana choose to accompany Ram into exile, and the three live in different hermitages, meeting sages and protecting forests from demonic threats.
3. During their stay at Panchavati near the Godavari, the demoness Shurpanakha’s humiliation leads her brother Ravana to plot revenge against Ram.

Abduction of Sita and alliance with Vanaras

1. Ravana, the king of Lanka, abducts Sita by deception while Ram and Lakshmana are lured away from their hut, an event that becomes the central conflict of the epic.
2. While searching for Sita, Ram befriends the exiled monkey king Sugriva and the great devotee Hanuman; in return for helping Sugriva regain his throne, Ram gains the support of the Vanara (monkey) army.
3. Hanuman leaps across the ocean to Lanka, finds Sita, consoles her, and brings back proof of her presence, strengthening Ram’s resolve and strategy for the coming war.

War in Lanka and return to Ayodhya

1. With the help of the Vanara army, Ram constructs a bridge across the ocean, known as Rama Setu, to march to Lanka and confront Ravana.
2. A fierce war follows in which many heroes on both sides fall, and finally Ram kills Ravana (with the support of Vibhishana, Ravana’s righteous brother), liberating Sita and ending the tyrant’s rule.
3. After Sita proves her purity, Ram, Sita, and Lakshmana return to Ayodhya at the end of the 14-year exile, where Ram is crowned king; this joyous homecoming is associated with the festival of Diwali in many traditions.

Ram Rajya and later life

1. Ram’s reign, often called “Ram Rajya,” is portrayed as the ideal of good governance marked by justice, welfare of all citizens, social harmony, and strict adherence to dharma.
2. Later traditions describe episodes in which public doubts about Sita’s time in Lanka lead Ram to make painful decisions, and in some tellings Sita returns to the earth, while Ram continues to rule and raise their sons Lava and Kusha.
3. At the end of his earthly mission, Ram is believed to resume his divine form and return to Vaikuntha (the abode of Vishnu), with some accounts stating that he takes the people of Ayodhya with him.

Significance and legacy

1. Shri Ram is honored as “Maryada Purushottam,” the supreme example of righteous conduct in roles as son, husband, friend, warrior, and king.
2. His life story in the Ramayana, along with many regional Ramayanas and Rama traditions, shapes Indian ethics, family ideals, devotion (bhakti), and political thought, inspiring concepts of ideal rulership and social order.
3. Temples, festivals, and performing arts centered on Ram and Sita—such as Ram Navami, Diwali, and Ramlila—remain integral to cultural and spiritual life across India and the wider Hindu world.