Week 2 Storytelling: The Hunt for Siti

The Hunt for Siti

One early morning in the City of Ayodhy the sun shined bright on the large mountains and green gardens of the city. The birds chirped and the animals of the forest frolicked in joy of such a marvelous day. Dasharatha the king of Ayodhy awakened and glanced out the window watching the children of the city play on his lands. Looking over he noticed his wives looking out watching the kids play. Saddened, because he was not able to have children he decided to pay a visit to the Gods and ask for help. He prepared his glorious horse which could travel miles of land with out getting tired. The majestic horse was also able to fly taking the king to the heavens to speak to the Gods. The Gods heard his plead for children and they granted him the gift. He had three sons Rama, Lakshmana, and Bharata. Each child received the love of their father equally but each child belonged to a different mother. The king one day began to get very ill leading to an incurable sickness that left him with very little time to live. He had to chose one son to take his throne. Bharatas mother planned an evil scheme to make it seem as if Lakshmana and Rama had committed a crime causing their father to choose Bharata. At that moment Bharata was not present. He was out with Vishvamitra practicing his combat skills. When he came home he found out that his father passed away and that his brothers had been exiled from the city.

                  Rama and Lakshmana make their way into the forest seeking shelter. They came across a herd of majestic horses like the one their father owned. They round them up and struggle for many days trying to tame the wild beast. One day the beast escaped leaving the brothers without horses. As the brother go deeper into the forest searching for them they come across demons lurking for food. The demons spot the brothers and began to chase them down. The two older brothers being trained for combat decide to fight back. The battle goes on for hours when suddenly the demons get trampled by the horse which had escaped the brother’s barn. The horses manage to kill one of the demons while one demon named Marichi has escaped. The brothers have gained the trust of the horses and have joined in friendship.

                  Exploring the forest Rama comes across a city nearby. He spots a beautiful woman playing with the animals of the wilderness. He approaches her and builds a friendship with this beautiful woman. He finds out she is Siti princess of the city he stumbled upon. They set a plan to visit each other in the same place for many days to come till one day she does not show up. Worried about her absence he goes into the village looking for answers. He finds out the king of the city has set out a race for the hand of his princess. Rama decides to compete but the demon Marichi has come back for revenge. The night before the race Marichi sneaks into the barn and places a potion into the water of Ramas horse that debilitates his speed. The day of the race Rama loses and Siti becomes the women of another man. Rama unable to believe what has happened kidnaps Siti and takes her to live in the forest with him. Marichi upset by their reunion returns to the darkness of the forest.

                  Bharata worried about the economy of his city is set on going into the forest to look for his two older brothers to ask them to come back to help him. Bharata searches for his brothers in the deep regions of the forest till one day he finds them. He tells the brothers what has happened but his brothers refuse to return. Bharata knowing the love Rama has for Siti decided to kidnap Siti and leaves a trail leading back to Ayodhy. Lakashmana wakes up to the cries of his brother searching for Siti. They set quest to look for her. They stumble across a woman, Shurpanakha, who offers her home for the brothers to rest for a few days. She falls in love with Rama. Rama unable to cheat on Siti refuses Shurpanakha and tells her to never cross his path again. Feeling betrayed she tells her brother Ravana she was abused by a wild man. Marichi has been following the brothers through out the journey and joins forces with Ravana to fight the brothers. Marichi knows the location of Siti and goes out and takes her away from Bharata. Bharata finds his brother once again to tell Rama what he has done and what has happened to Siti.  Ravana and Marichi use Siti as bait. They leave Siti in the forest, as they follow her across the tree tops. Afraid, Siti screams for help. The brothers hear her cry and follow the sound of her voice. The brothers find Siti but they are surprised by Ravana and Marichi.

                  The gods had lots of appreciation for their father and decide to send down the powerful bird, Jatayu. The battle began to get extremely gruesome causing Ravana to flee, taking Siti. Ravana takes Siti into a cave with the plan of raping her as his sister told him the lie that Rama did the same to her. In the cave Siti fought back giving Jatayu enough time to find them and fly down to give Ravana a hard blow leaving him in pain. Jatayu was hit by Ravana right before taking Siti leaving him with blurred vision. Unable to see Ravana escapes with Siti once again. After resting Jatayu returns to tell Rama and his brothers what happened. The brother return to the scene but there is not sign of their trial and thus another search begins.

Rama rejects Shurpanakha : Indian Epics Images

Author's note: The actual story comes from the Ramayana, Public Domain Edition. It begins with the description of Ayodhy. The King cannot have children which he sets out to perform a ritual where he sacrifices a horse. He also exiles one son only, Rama. When Rama wins Siti its actually a different competition where he wins. As the king is dying he has a vision where he sees his city come down. As Rama continues in the forest he encounters a woman who falls in love with him but Rama suggest her leave with his brother Lakshmana. Feeling humiliated she tells her brothers what has occurred. One of her brothers. Ravana sets out a plan of revenge. He kidnaps siti. I chose to change the story up and add more of a family problem to it. I also decided to add the horses in order to add a nature theme to it. I chose this specific image because I feel as if this was the begin of the long lasting battle between Rama and Ravana. I wanted to make sure the readers got an idea of the importance of that specific scene. Nothing helps me better than actually seeing an image in order to remember a specific scene.

Bibliography: Public Domain Edition: Ramayana