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Long ago, in the heart of central India, there were two kingdoms living in peace and prosperity. One was called Koshala and was ruled by King Dash, and the one was called Mitha and was ruled by King Jana. Koshala's capital city was filled with beautiful construction and architecture, containing castles, temples and scenic gardens. Surrounding the city was rich forest terrain with many creatures living in peace. Birds flew happily over the land, hunters and fishermen were never hungry, and fruit and vegetables grew untainted near the capital's borders. King Dash was of the "sun" people, and lived in a very sturdy castle with guards and animals protecting every corner. The king was happy with his three wives, never wanting anything else to tarnish their perfect existence. He selfishly feared the possibility of having children and losing power, and was willing to do almost anything to maintain his authority.
The king and his wives recently struggled to maintain power in the kingdom. The women of the castle usually fought for the king's attention as well as over the many luxurious items they typically stole from each other. On top of the expected issues in a polygamous, aristocratic living arrangement, the people of Koshala's recent behavior exhibited a lack of compliance and was beginning to wear on the castle morale. Because the citizens were experiencing a period of happiness and prosperity for so long, many people from surrounding territories began to migrate to Koshala. Additionally, people began having too many children because they thought the city and surrounding resources would surely provide for their every need. The population of the city then began to reach levels beyond control and the citizens sought resources from the castle, knowing that the king was surely hoarding food and clean water. The possibility of revolution was rising quickly, along with the anxiety of the general populus, and panic struck the guards and servants of the castle. Citizens began to station themselves outside the castle with weapons, as if they planned to storm the castle and take the king's supplies. The king began to search for remedies to the overpopulation issues, but was only able to think of limiting the childbearing liberties in the kingdom.
One day, the king heard of a traditional horse sacrifice, meant to provoke infertility in himself and his lovers. He found that if the sacrifice was done under a full moon, it would make the entire kingdom infertile. He was conflicted, as infertility was something he wanted for his wives only and did not want to impose such conditions on his subjects. Eventually, he was unable to see past his desire for power and felt the mass infertility would insure that he did not produce an heir, as well as insure that the people of Koshala maintained a sustainable population. When he told his wives of this ritual, they glowed with happiness for they, too, did not want a child to eventually take their power. They thought that if the gods accepted their sacrifice, perhaps they would consider granting such a great city the gift of immortality, which would allow the happiness of Koshala to last forever.
Then, under a full moon, the king gathered his wives and many loyal subjects to witness the sacrifice. King Dash, however, made the mistake of ignoring the ritual, sacrificing rodents and small forest creatures rather than horses. Horses, after all, cost much for money and were limited in supply. As the people of Koshala lit the many sacrificial posts on fire, King Dash heard the gods cry out. The king did not know if the cries were for the sacrifice of improper animals, or because of the gods' contempt for his own power-hungry ways. In any case, the gods erupted into a furious spell, swearing to King Dash that he would be given not simply one child, but four sons fit for the throne. The gods also swore that each woman in Koshala would bear at least one child in the following year.
The children were born nine months later at the same time, meaning one of the wives bore twins. Of the four male children, the firstborn twin, Ramo, was particularly beautiful and shone like a holy light across the land. Ramo was said to exhibit the mark of the mighty god, Vishnu, and would surely take power over Koshala. Overwhelmed with frustration and anxiety, the king and his wives fled the land with their new, undesired sons. The people of Koshala discovered the king's true intentions with their fertility, which confirmed their view of the king as selfish and deserving of being overthrown. Furious and sure to make changes, they adopted an election-based system for the monarchy, and swore to distribute resources equally. If the king's sons ever returned to the kingdom, they would surely be denied power.
Author's Note: This story derives from the Public Domain Edition of the Ramayana, featuring multiple authors. The story is based on the first three episodes, entitled King Dasharatha, Dasharatha's sons and Rama: Avatar of Vishnu. The king in the original story very much desired children, and achieved them trough a ritual horse sacrifice. The king's name in the Ramayana is King Dasharatha, and one of his sons is actually named Rama. Rama is actually the avatar of Vishnu as well, and was expected to take over the kingdom when he was a child. Eventually in the Ramayana, the king sends Rama into exile before dying, so I thought it would be interesting if he sent himself into exile as well. I also added some elements to the story to give a bit of context and suspense, such as the king's fear of revolution and the overpopulation issues in the kingdom. I chose this story because I wanted to deepen my understanding of the Ramayana and the backgrounds of its many characters. In the future, I'll likely continue using stories from the Ramayana or Mahabharata as motivation for my own writing.
Bibliography: Mackenzie, PDE Ramayana, PDE Ramayana
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Picture of King Dasharatha on the Throne
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