Vishvamitra prepared Rama by giving him many weapons. There were deadly discs and spears, maces and lassoes, plus the divine weapons called astras, unleashed by the power of the mind.

Vishvamitra gave Rama weapons with which he could fight not just rakshasas, but also gandharvas and nagas, asuras and danavas, all possible enemies.

Rama received the weapons, and Vishvamitra recited the mantras that Rama would need to unleash this arsenal of supernatural power. Rama learned all the mantras.

The weapons then spoke to Rama with human voices. "We are yours to command," they said, "and we will keep you safe."

Vishvamitra had brought Rama into the forest and taught him how to wield supernatural powers: arrows powered by the sun and moon, wind and lightning, air and fire, invincible weapons of the mind.

Then Tataka arrived. They could hear her voice shrieking ever louder as she approached the ashram.

"Kill her!" commanded Vishvamitra.

"But she is a woman," protested Rama.

"The enemy has no gender," replied Vishvamitra."Kill her now!"

Rama chanted a mantra and then launched an overwhelming arrow in the direction of her voice.

His arrow struck Tataka in the heart and she fell to the ground, dead.

Vishvamitra then commanded Rama and Lakshmana to guard his ashram against rakshasas while the priests conducted sacred rituals.

At night, rakshasas attacked: Maricha and Subahu swooped down, screaming with rage, spewing blood upon the fire-altar. These were Tataka's sons, seeking to avenge their mother's death.

Rama swiftly shot an arrow at Maricha which struck him in the chest, hurling him far away into the ocean.

Lakshmana, meanwhile, shot Subahu, who fell dead on the spot.

Freed from the rakshasas, the priests conducted their rituals in peace.

But the journey was not over: Vishvamitra had still more plans for the princes.

During their journey, Vishvamitra told the princes many stories. One story he told was about Ahalya.

Brahma created Ahalya, the most beautiful woman in the world. He then gave her to the rishi Gautama as a wife.

Gautama, however, had no time for Ahalya, focused as he was on his devotions.

Indra, meanwhile, lusted for the beautiful Ahalya. Disguised as Gautama, Indra took Ahalya to bed.

Gautama found out and cursed them both.

"You, Indra, will become impotent," he said. Indra's testicles fell to the ground.

"You, Ahalya, will turn into a stone." Ahalya was trapped, motionless, inside a stone.

As they continued their journey over mountains and through forests, Vishvamitra led the princes into a deserted ashram. Rama wondered why Vishvamitra had brought them there. And then... something surprising happened. As Rama's foot brushed against a rock, a beautiful woman suddenly appeared before him.

"You have liberated me, Rama," she said. "I am Ahalya, and I welcome you to Gautama's ashram."

Next, Gautama emerged from the trees. He bowed to Vishvamitra and the princes, and then he extended his hand to Ahalya. Smiling, she took her husband's hand.

All was forgiven.

Rejoicing, the devas rained down flowers from heaven.

After Ahalya departed with Gautama, Rama asked about Indra. "Was Indra ever freed from Gautama's curse?"

"Indra begged the devas for help," said Vishvamitra, "but no one knew what to do. Then Agni had an idea: they could give Indra the testicles of a ram. They found a ram tied to a pole, ready to be sacrificed. They cut off the ram's testicles and took them to Indra, so that he could replace the testicles he had lost."

Lakshmana burst out laughing, but Rama knew this was a serious matter. The curse of a rishi can afflict even the gods.

"Janaka, king of Videha, has a mighty bow that once belonged to Shiva," Vishvamitra said. "Whoever lifts and strings that bow will marry Janaka's daughter, Sita. Many kings and princes have tried to lift the bow; they all failed."

Rama and Lakshmana looked at Vishvamitra expectantly.

"Let's go see that bow," he said.

Vishvamitra then took the princes to Mithila, Janaka's royal city.

Janaka was delighted by their arrival. "Powerful men have been defeated by this bow, and in their anger they have waged war against me," he said. "I'll gladly wed Sita to Rama if he passes the test."

This is how Sita became the daughter of King Janaka:

The farmers of Mithila invited their king to begin the sowing season. Janaka brought forth his golden plow and offered prayers to the gods.

As he plowed, he noticed ten tiny fingers rising up from the soil. There, in a freshly plowed furrow, he found a tiny baby, a girl, reaching her arms towards him.

"She is a gift from Bhudevi, the earth-goddess," Janaka exclaimed, "and she has chosen me to be her father!"

Janaka named her Sita, which is Sanskrit for "furrow," and he adopted her as his daughter.

But where did that baby come from? Here is one story:

Ravana kept the blood of warriors he had killed in a pot.

Meanwhile, a rishi kept sacred milk in a pot, hoping to acquire an incarnation of the goddess Lakshmi as his daughter.

Ravana stole that milk and poured it into the warriors' blood.

Horrified, Ravana's wife Mandodari drank the blood and milk, hoping to conceal Ravana's crime. Instead, she became pregnant with an incarnation of Lakshmi.

When the baby was born, Mandodari buried her in the ground far from Lanka.

Janaka discovered that baby.

He named her Sita.

This is another story about the baby in the field:

King Padmaksha had a daughter, Padma, an incarnation of Lakshmi.

Ravana attacked the kingdom and killed Padmaksha.

Padma jumped into her father's pyre, which transformed her into a jewel. Ravana put the jewel in a box and returned to Lanka.

Ravana's wife opened the box and found a baby inside. "She brings doom!" Mandodari shouted. "Take her away!"

Then the baby shouted, "I will return and destroy your kingdom."

Ravana buried the box in the ground far from Lanka.

Janaka discovered the baby inside the box.

He named her Sita.