Rama's Journey in Mithila is the part of

Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...

from the ''Vishwamitra Ashram'' at

Buxar Buxar is a nagar parishad city in the state of Bihar, India, sharing border with Balia and Ghazipur district of Uttar Pradesh. It is the headquarters of the eponymous Buxar district, as well as the headquarters of the community development ...

to the Kingdom of

Mithila Mithila may refer to: Places * Mithilā, a synonym for the ancient Videha state ** Mithilā (ancient city), the ancient capital city of Videha * Mithila (region), a cultural region (historical and contemporary), now divided between India and Nepa ...

Background

It is said that when

Rama Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda' ...

completed his

Vedic upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas ( or ; ), sometimes collectively called the Veda, are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed ...

education from the Guru

Vashishtha Vasishtha (, ) is one of the oldest and revered Vedic rishis or sages, and one of the Saptarishis (seven great Rishis). Vasishtha is credited as the chief author of Mandala 7 of the ''Rigveda''. Vasishtha and his family are mentioned in Rigve ...

, he came to the royal palace at

Ayodhya Ayodhya () is a city situated on the banks of the Sarayu river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ayodhya district as well as the Ayodhya division of Uttar Pradesh, India. Ayodhya became th ...

. After some time, sage

Vishwamitra Vishvamitra (, ) is one of the most venerated rishis or sages of ancient India. Vishvamitra is one of the seven Brahmarshi. According to Hindu tradition, he is stated to have written most of the Mandala 3 of the Rigveda, including the Ga ...

came to the palace and demanded the princes

and

Lakshmana Lakshmana (, ), also known as Laxmana, Lakhan, Saumitra, and Ramanuja, is the younger brother of Rama in the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is considered as an incarnation of Shesha, the lord of serpents. Lakshmana was married to Urmila, and i ...

with King

Dasharatha Dasharatha (, IAST: Daśaratha; born Nemi) was the king of Kosala, with its capital at Ayodhya, in the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. Dasharatha married Kausalya, Sumitra and Kaikeyi. He was the father of Rama, the protagonist of the epic Ramayana ...

for the protection of the

Yajna In Hinduism, ''Yajna'' or ''Yagna'' (, Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐd͡ʒɲə ) also known as Hawan, is a ritual done in front of a sacred fire, often with mantras. Yajna has been a Vedas, Vedic tradition, described in a layer of Vedic literature ...

at his ashram. After that princes Rama and Lakshmana were sent with the Guru Vishwamitra to his ashram. Rama and Lakshman came to ''Vishwamitra Siddhashram'' to protect the

of the sages. There, he killed many demons like Tadaka and

Subahu Subahu () was a rakshasa featured in the Hindu epic Ramayana. Story Subahu was the son of Shambara, a demon slayed by Indra. Subahu, Maricha and Maricha's mother, Tataka, took immense pleasure in harassing the munis of the jungle, especial ...

during the Yajna. According to historians, Rama was not only brought to protect the Yajna, but they were also taught many lessons in weapons besides the

Vedas FIle:Atharva-Veda samhita page 471 illustration.png, upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the ''Atharvaveda''. The Vedas ( or ; ), sometimes collectively called the Veda, are a large body of relig ...

in the

gurukula A () is a traditional system of religious education in India with ('students' or 'disciples') living near or with the guru in the same house for a period of time where they learn and get educated by their guruji. Etymology The word is a com ...

of Maharishi Vishvamitra. It is said that after the completion of Yajnas at the Ashram, Vishwamitra was invited by King Shreedhwaja Janaka of the Mithila Kingdom to participate in '' Sita Swayamvar'' in his court. After that, Vishwamitra, with his disciples Rama and Lakshmana, went on a journey to the

Kingdom.

Journey in Mithila

Ramchaura Mandir, Hajipur

According to legend, after crossing the

Ganges The Ganges ( ; in India: Ganga, ; in Bangladesh: Padma, ). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international which goes through India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China." is a trans-boundary rive ...

by boat, they first came to

Ramchaura Mandir The Ramchaura Mandir is a Hindu temple in the city of Hajipur, Bihar, India. Dedicated to the god Rama, it is located at Rambhadra near Helabazar. According to local folklore, Rama is believed to have visited this place on his way to Janakpu ...

in Vaishali while going to

Janakpur Janakpurdham or Janakpur (), is the capital city of Madhesh Province. This sub-metropolitan city is a central hub for the Maithili language, as well as for religious and cultural tourism in Nepal. The city was founded in the early 18th centur ...

for ''Sita Swayamvar''. This place is located in

Hajipur Hajipur ( , ) is the headquarters and largest city of Vaishali district of the state of Bihar in India. Hajipur is the 16th most populous city of Bihar, besides being the second-fastest developing city, next to Patna. It had a total population ...

in Vaishali district of the

Mithila region Mithila (), also known as Tirhut, Tirabhukti and Mithilanchal, is a geographical and cultural region of the Indian subcontinent bounded by the Mahananda River in the east, the Ganges in the south, the Gandaki River in the west and by the foothil ...

in the present state of

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

. It is said that they were welcomed here by King ''Sumati'' of Vishala Nagari. It is believed that Rama, Lakshman and Vishvamitra rested here at a mound on the bank of the Ganga river for one night. This place is now known as ''Ramchaura''.

Gautam Ashram, Kamtaul

Then they traveled towards

Gautam Ashram Gautam Ashram () was a gurukul of the ancient Indian philosopher Gautama. It is located at the west bank of Khiroi river in Brahmpur village of Jale block of Darbhanga district in Bihar. It is only at a seven kilometres distance from Kamtaul rail ...

at Ahiyari village in the

of the present

Darbhanga district Darbhanga district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar States and territories of India, state in eastern India, and Darbhanga city is the administrative headquarters of this district and 5th largest city of Bihar as well. Darbhanga d ...

of Bihar. When they reached Gautam Ashram, Rama became curious to know the deserted situation of the ashram so he asked his teacher about its history. Then Guru

narrated the story of the curse of

Ahalya In Hinduism, Ahalya (, IAST: Ahalyā) also spelt as Ahilya, is the wife of the sage Gautama Maharishi. Many Hindu scriptures describe her legend of seduction by the king of the gods Indra, her husband's curse for her infidelity, and her liber ...

and the history of

Ahalya sthan Ahalya Sthan (also called Ahilya Sthan or Ahilya Asthan) is a Hindu temple located at Ahiyari South in the city of Darbhanga, State of Bihar, India. The temple is dedicated to Ahalya. Legend According to Ramayana, Rama and Lakshmana went to ...

at the Ashram. It is said that

freed Ahalya from her curse there.

Amravati River

According to the legend of a dead and sacred mythological river

Amravati Amravati (/Marathi phonology, əmᵊɾɑʋᵊt̪iː/) is a city in Maharashtra located in the Vidarbha region. It is the ninth largest city in Maharashtra, India & second largest city in the Vidarbha region in terms of population. It is the ...

, when Prince Rama was going towards Janakpur to participate in the

Sita Swayamvara Sita Swayamvara ( Maithili: सीता स्वंवर) is the ''swayamvara'' event, culminating in the wedding of the deities Rama and Sita, the protagonists of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. The event was related to a competition among the k ...

, he took a sacred bath in the river of Amravati at the Sarisav Pahi village formerly known as ''Siddharth Kshetra'' also called as Sarso in the region of the Mithila Kingdom and after that he started his further journey towards

. The village of Sarisab Pahi is located in the Pandaul block of the

Madhubani district Madhubani district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar, India, and is a part of Darbhanga division. Its administrative headquarters are located in Madhubani. The district has an area of and has a population of 4,487,379 (as of 20 ...

in the present state of

in India.

Vishwamitra Ashram, Bisaul

After that they went to

Bisaul Bisaul ( Maithili: बिसौल) also known as ''Visaul'' is a historical village in the Mithila region of Bihar in India. It is situated in the Madhubani district of Bihar. The village was founded by the queen Vishwasa Devi of the Oiniwar Dy ...

village near the city

of Mithila. It is said that in Bisaul village there was a royal mango garden, where King Janaka built an ashram for the residence of the sage Vishwamitra in Mithila. This place is called as

Vishwamitra Ashram, Bisaul Vishwamitra Ashram at Bisaul village of Madhubani district in the Mithila region of Bihar was the residence place related to the Vedic sage Vishwamitra in Ramayana. It is located near the capital city Janakpur of ancient Mithila Kingdom. Descr ...

and

with his teacher Vishwamitra stayed here.

Phulhar

Nearby the ashram, there was a royal flower garden known as

Baag Taraag Pushpavatika Baag Taraag Pushpavatika (Maithili language, Maithili: बाग तराग पुष्पवाटिका) is a legendary place in the Mithila (region), Mithila region of Bihar. It is related to the Hindu epic Ramayana. It is located at Phul ...

Phulhar Phulhar is an ancient historical site in Madhubani district, Madhubani district of Mithila region of Bihar, India. It is the place where Lord Rama and Goddess Sita first time met. It was a flower garden of King Janaka of Mithila. A very famo ...

, where Rama and Lakshmana went to pick up some flowers for their teacher to worship. Nearby the garden, there is the ''Girija Devi'' temple, where princess

Sita Sita (; ), also known as Siya, Jānaki and Maithili, is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. Sita is the consort of Rama, the avatar of god Vishnu, and is regarded as an avatar of goddess Lakshmi. She is t ...

used to worship the goddess Girija Devi. It is believed that the first meeting of

and

took place in this garden while flowers were being picked there.

Janakpur (Capital of Mithila)

After resting at ''Bisual'', Rama and Lakshmana with their teacher Vishwamitra went to court of King Janaka at

where ''Swayamvar Sabha'' for the purpose of marriage of princess Sita was organised. In the competition of Swayamvar ceremony prince

was declared as the winner.

Manimandapa

According to legend, in

, after winning ''Swayamvar Sabha'' at the court of

Janaka Janaka (, IAST: ''Janaka'') is the King of Videha who ruled from Mithila (region), Mithila, in the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. Janaka was married to Sunayana (Ramayana), Sunayana. He is the father of Sita and Urmila in the epic. The term Janaka ...

, Rama, along with his other three brothers, were married at ''

Manimandapa Manimandapa (Maithili language, Maithili: मणिमंडप) is a Hindu temple believed by some to be the place of marriage between the Prince Rama of Ayodhya (Ramayana), Ayodhya and the Princess Sita of Videha, Mithila Kingdom. It is located ...

''. After the prince Rama broke the bow at the court of Janaka, the procession for marriage came from

. The place where the altar and sacrificial pavilion (Yajna Mandap) decorated with gems was built for the marriage in

is near Rani Bazar known

. In the campus of the shrine there is a pond where the feet of the four brothers were washed at the time of the marriage. Mani mandap

References

{{Reflist Ramayana Rama Mithila Hinduism