The Ramayana (/rɑːˈmɑːjənə/; Sanskrit: रामायणम्, romanized: Rāmāyaṇam) is a Sanskrit epic from ancient India, one of the two important epics of Hinduism, the other being the Mahābhārata. ...
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Together, they form the core of Hindu religious history. The epic, traditionally ascribed to the Maharishi Valmiki, narrates the life of Rama, a prince of Ayodhya in the kingdom of Kosala. The epic follows his fourteen-year exile to the forest urged by his father King Dasharatha, on the request of Rama´s stepmother Kaikeyi; his travels across forests in the Indian subcontinent with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana; the kidnapping of Sita by Ravana, the king of Lanka, that resulted in war; and Rama´s eventual return to Ayodhya along with Sita to be crowned king amidst jubilation and celebration.