The Mahabharata and the Ramayana are two spiritual guides, intrinsic to the Hindu way of life. From a secular point of view, these are literary gems whose value cannot be underplayed. The Ramayana and Mahabharata are both earliest forms of the epic poem and are both the basis of valuable teachings that Hindus live by…
A common question about the life and times of Valmiki, is in regards to his status as a former robber, before attaining enlightenment and writing the Ramayana. While Hindu scholars do not invest much time into debating the veracity of these claims, folklore and Hindu religious textbook knowledge of Valmiki coexist side by side, and…
Once upon a time, Prajapati Daksh conducted a yagya. He invited the Gods, demigods and saints from all across the globe except Lord Shiva. Sati, the daughter of Prajapati Daksh and the wife of Lord Shiva went to attend the yagya but was shocked to see that no arrangements had been made for her husband.…
Once King Nimi invited Rishi Vashishtha for conducting a yagya. But instead Rishi Vashishtha went to conduct a Yagya at Indra’s palace. Thus, Nimi invited Rishi Gautam to conduct the Yagya. After successfully conducting the yagya for Indra, Rishi Vashishta decided to go to Nimi’s palace. Since Nimi was infuriated because of his absence, he…
The oath of Raja Janak
After Ahilya’s redemption, Lord Ram and Lakshman along with Rishi Vishwamitra went ahead. They reached a place where the holiest of all rivers, Ganga was flowing along its course. Lord Ram was mesmerized and asked Rishi Vishwamitra to narrate the complete story of the origin of Ganga. The wise rishi accepted the request and began…
Once upon a time, Lord Brahma invoked a beautiful lady named Ahilya. Lord Indra and other minor gods thought that Lord Brahma would hand her over to them but instead he gave this responsibility to Gautam Rishi. After a few years, Lord Brahma returned to the hermitage of Gautam Rishi only to find Ahilya hale and hearty. He became so happy that he…
One day Lord Ram and his brother Lakshman were travelling across the forest along with their guru, Rishi Vishwamitra. They spotted the demoness ‘Tadka’ and the great lord shot her dead then and there. After this incident, guru Vishwamitra grew confident of the fact that prince Ram was none other than the incarnation of the supreme…
Rishi(Saint) Vishwamitra along with his disciples used to worship and do yagna(ritual sacrifices) in the forest but the rakshasas(demons) didn’t allow them to do so. They used to interfere in the sacred rituals and interrupt the sacred processions. Thus Rishi Vishwamitra went to King Dashratha and asked him to handover his sons; Rama and Lakshmana…
Once a monkey along with its trainer arrived in Ayodhya. Seeing the monkey perform various stunts, Lord Rama demanded a pet monkey. King Dashratha immediately called all the monkey breeders in his empire and asked them to showcase the best monkeys that they had. Lord Rama checked all the monkeys but liked none of them.…
