Ramayana: Valmiki's story, told gently रामायण: वाल्मीकि की कथा

Valmiki's Ramayana in twenty gentle sittings

The Ramayana as the sage Valmiki gave it, told simply in twenty sittings, kanda by kanda: the poet's first verse, four princes growing up in Ayodhya, the bow in Mithila, fourteen years in the forest, Sita's steadiness in the Ashoka grove, the homecoming, and the songs of Lava and Kusha. Where later tellings such as the Ramcharitmanas add something that is not in Valmiki, we say so gently. Episode 19 marks Sita's ordeal by fire as a contested passage: scholars debate its place in the earliest telling, and later traditions hold it differently. Narrated with an AI voice; the Sanskrit verses are also recited with an AI voice.

Narrated with an AI voice.

By
DharmikStudio Originals
Language
English
Length
3 h 2 min
Category
Itihasa & Purana › Ramayana
Narration
AI voice

Episodes and lessons

  1. The poet and the two birds Episode 1 · 9 min · Read along

    A sage asks who in this world is truly good, and hears a name. By a quiet river, his own sorrow turns into verse, and the story of Rama begins.

    It begins: "Come and sit for a while. Let the day settle. Take one slow breath with me, in, and out."

  2. A king's prayer and four sons Episode 2 · 9 min · Read along

    King Dasharatha rules a happy city, yet his own home is quiet. What happens when a king who has everything asks for the one thing he lacks?

    It begins: "Welcome back. Last time we sat with Valmiki by the river Tamasa, where his pity for a small bird became the first shloka."

  3. The sage at the door Episode 3 · 9 min · Read along

    A famous sage arrives at Ayodhya and asks the king for his teenage son. Why does the father hesitate, and what does Rama learn on the forest road?

    It begins: "Welcome back. Last time, four little boys were born in Ayodhya, and we saw how Lakshmana would not sleep unless Rama was beside him."

  4. The bow in Mithila Episode 4 · 9 min · Read along

    In Mithila there is a bow so heavy that kings go home without even lifting it. What happens when a quiet young prince from Ayodhya asks if he may try?

    It begins: "Welcome back. Last time Rama and Lakshmana walked with the sage Vishwamitra, learned the Bala and Atibala, and at Gautama's ashram Rama bowed to Ahalya."

  5. The morning that changed Episode 5 · 9 min · Read along

    The whole city is decorating its streets for Rama's coronation. In one chamber of the palace, a queen who loves Rama is listening to someone who fears for her future.

    It begins: "Welcome back. Last time Rama broke Shiva's bow in Mithila, and four brothers came home to Ayodhya with four brides."

  6. Rama walks out smiling Episode 6 · 9 min · Read along

    Rama is told he must leave Ayodhya for fourteen years, on the very day he was to be crowned. What does he say, and who insists on walking with him?

    It begins: "Come, sit with me again."

  7. Chitrakuta and a father's grief Episode 7 · 9 min · Read along

    Rama, Sita and Lakshmana make their first forest home on the hill of Chitrakuta. Far away in Ayodhya, King Dasharatha finally tells his queen about a mistake from his youth.

    It begins: "Let us sit together again."

  8. Bharata's refusal Episode 8 · 10 min · Read along

    Bharata comes home to find a kingdom waiting for him and his father gone. What he does next has made his name a byword for love between brothers.

    It begins: "Welcome back."

  9. Into the forest of sages Episode 9 · 9 min · Read along

    Rama, Sita and Lakshmana leave Chitrakuta and walk south through the Dandaka forest, from one sage's ashram to the next. On the way, Sita gives Rama a piece of advice that he treasures.

    It begins: "Come, let us sit together."

  10. The golden deer Episode 10 · 9 min · Read along

    A deer with a golden coat appears near the hut, and Sita longs to have it. Why did even Ravana's own uncle warn him against what he was about to do?

    It begins: "Let us sit together once more."

  11. Rama searches, Shabari waits Episode 11 · 9 min · Read along

    Rama comes back to Panchavati and finds the hut empty, and the forest will not tell him where Sita has gone. On the road that follows, an old woman by Lake Pampa has been waiting for him for years, so what does she have to offer?

    It begins: "Come and sit. Last time, Sita was carried away from Panchavati while Rama was far off, following the golden deer."

  12. The friend in the hills Episode 12 · 9 min · Read along

    Two strangers with bows walk towards Rishyamuka hill, and the vanaras hiding there are afraid. One of them goes down in disguise to find out who they are, and what he says makes Rama stop and listen.

    It begins: "Welcome back. Last time Rama grieved for Sita, honoured old Jatayu, and was welcomed by Shabari at Lake Pampa."

  13. The search begins Episode 13 · 9 min · Read along

    The monsoon is over, and the friend who promised to help has not come. Then the search for Sita spreads to all four directions, and on a southern shore the searchers learn where she is, but who can cross the sea?

    It begins: "Last time, Hanuman met Rama for the first time, Rama and Sugriva became friends before a sacred fire, and Sugriva became king of Kishkindha again."

  14. The leap Episode 14 · 9 min · Read along

    Hanuman stands on the mountain by the sea with everyone's hope resting on him. Across the water lies a golden city full of strangers, and somewhere in it is Sita, but where?

    It begins: "Last time, the searchers learned from old Sampati that Sita is in Lanka, across the sea."

  15. In the Ashoka grove Episode 15 · 9 min · Read along

    In a grove far from home, Sita has refused a king's every offer and is close to losing hope. Then a small voice in the branches above her begins to tell Rama's story, and she must decide whether to trust it.

    It begins: "Last time Hanuman crossed the ocean, searched all of Lanka by moonlight, and nearly lost heart."

  16. "I have seen Sita" Episode 16 · 10 min · Read along

    Hanuman stands before the king of Lanka with nothing but his words. What does a messenger say to a proud king, and how does he tell Rama the news without making him wait even one breath?

    It begins: "Come and sit with me for a while."

  17. The bridge and the refuge Episode 17 · 9 min · Read along

    A stranger from the other side arrives at Rama's camp and asks for shelter, and Rama's friends are not sure he can be trusted. What Rama says next has been held close by devotees for centuries.

    It begins: "Let us sit together again."

  18. Where enmity ends Episode 18 · 9 min · Read along

    Two great kings meet at last, and the story reaches the moment it has been moving towards since the forest. How does Rama treat a rival once the struggle is over?

    It begins: "Come, let us sit together."

  19. The road home to Ayodhya Episode 19 · 10 min · Read along

    After fourteen years, Rama, Sita and Lakshmana turn towards home, and Bharata is counting the days. Before the flight home comes Sita's ordeal by fire, a passage whose place in Valmiki's poem is debated and that later tellings hold differently; here Sita meets it in her own words.

    It begins: "Come and sit with me."

  20. The songs of Lava and Kusha Episode 20 · 9 min · Read along

    In a forest ashram, two young boys learn a long poem by heart, not knowing it is the story of their own parents. When they sing it in a king's court, who is listening?

    It begins: "This is our last sitting together in this series, so let us take a slow breath first."

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