Around 3 Months back while browsing through crossword,I stumbled upon a book called Prince of Ayodhya by Ashok K Banker.The book was first part of the 6 part Ramyana series by the Author.Before laying hands on that book , the only other ramayan book I had read was RamCharitManas by Maha kavi Tulsidas.

My introduction to Ram and his tale was done by my Nani.She introduced me to the folklore of Rama and Lakshman.The deeds of the monkey God Hanuman and the unpardonable sins of Ravana.Numerous times she told me of this War between Adharm and Dharma in which Dharma won.

Nest time it was after my class 10th Exam that my mother handed me down Nani's Ramayana.I read that book as if I had been given a treasure.I could feel that I was not reading the words, but listening them through my nani's voice once again.I read that whole ramcharitmanas two or three times, sometimes as religious book sitting by the Temple in the house and other times like i read jeffrey archer.

RamCahritManas introduced me to the concept of dharma, the charm and love of Rama and the love for Hanuman.But reading the book by Ashok K Banker introduced me to a totally different world of Ram.A world which was like tulsida's world but was quite different.Banker based his book on Valmiki Ramayana, heavily borrowing from it.It could be said that his book was an english version of the Valmiki Ramyana.

Tulsidas's Ramyana was an work of devotee .It was his tribute to divinity of Lord Rama rather then being realistic story of Rama.Valmiki's ramayana was a more realistic apporach ,since it was supposed to be first hand account of what the SAGE had seen and experianced.Banker has mostly struck to the version by valmiki , here and there borrowing form other version's like Tulsidas , and Kumbam.

He has divided the Ramayana into six parts:

• Prince of Ayodhya:The first part of the series describes starts from the return of 4 brothers from Guru Vashisht's teaching and arrival of Guru Vishwamitra to Ayodhya seeking for Rama and their deprature to Bhyanak vana.The book also describes Ravana and his ammassing of troops for attack on Arya nations(this was some thin which I had not heard first and had to verify it).The book in general describes the life of Arya people then and doesn't glorify them.In fact in one instance i read something that would have been blasphemous for me that Dasrataha had 1000 concubines in his palace.The book also reveals the evil within Manthra the hunchbacked dasi of Queen Kaikeyi and goes on to describe her as the agent of Dark Lord.
• Siege of Mithila:The second part describes the war of two young princes of Ayodhya with Tarka and her son's in the bhayanak van, using the powers given by Guru Vishwamitra and how they two clean the forest of  all the Asura shakti's.Thereafter the march towards mithila, for an mission known only to guru Vishwamitra (my understanding was that they are going for Sita's swamyvar).The meeting between Sita and Rama doesnt take place in the gardens of Mithila as described by Tulsidas and shown on TV but on the forest,where Sita was disguised as a warrior.They then proceed to mithila where  Janak invites them for Sita's Swamvar.Ravana comes disguised and just manages to win Sita.But he is stopped by Vishwamitra using a loophole in the rules for swamvar.Ram marries sita in the Swamvar.But suddenly the Asuara troops start attacking Arya Nations from four side.Ravana nearly manages to kill Dashratha using his sorcery.It comes to Rama to defend Arya Civilization by unleashing the brahmastra , the only downfall will be that he will loose all his enerrgy and also will have to face the consequences of using brahamshakti.Rama uses the brahamastra and wipes of the Asura invasion and also maanging to ravana into a lifelless form(Something new for me).
• Demon's of Chitrakut:Rama after defeating asura returns to Ayodhya with his and his brothers wife,only to be challenged mid way by Parshuram.But it appears that he his bearing the brunt of unleashing the brahamastra.Manthra successfully manages to hide Kaikeyia and then taking her bodly form convinces dashratha to give in to the two vows and also poison's dashratha.Ram,Sita and Lakshman move to exile.While dashrath though cured of poison never manages recover completley.Manthra is prisoned and Ravana shows his presence in the palace of Ayodhya using Manthra's body.Rama reaches Panchvati where he hhas to fight a war agains the Asura's still remaining there for the next 14 years.The incident of cutting Supnakah's nose also takes palce.
• Armies of Hanumana:Rama and his army of dacoits and jungle people manage to defeat the asura's in the final battle of Jansthana.But the troubles are yet to leave them.Tormented by her lust for Rama,supnakha goes to Lanka,where using the bllod of rama she manages to bring alive Ravana who was in Coma due to the affects of Brahamastra unleashed by rama.Ravana springs back to life with a vow of punishing Rama and winning Sita.Both together set out on a mission of revenge and lust.Sita is kidnapped.On his mission to find sita ram stumble supon hanumana and his master Sugreev who are hiding in the forest of Kishkindha out of  fear of Bali.Rama manages to kill Bali.
• Bridge Of Rama:The whole army of Kishkindha along with the Kshtriya princes move towards the sea in search of Lanka to rescue Sita.But it's here that I got a newer version other then the one  I always I heard.I had always presumed or heard that Hanumana first flew to Lanka  and the the armies of rama marched to sea,but here it was quite opposite.It was after the armies of Rama reached sea and was joined by Vanar's around the world and the bears lead by Jamvan and JAmavan mabages to open the locked energies of hanuman that hanuman flews to Lanka,burns it up saving sita from near execution.
• King Of Ayodhya:Rama and his army manage to cross the ocean to lanka where they are met by the sorcey of Ravana.Vanar's and bears suffer huge losses.Some other misconception which were broken were that Khumbkaran was killed by Rama , no he was killed by Hanmuman.Secondly after Indrajeet binds rama and Lakshman with serpants, they are freed by Garuda himslef.The Sanjeevani buti which hanuman brought was used to save jamvan and not Lakshman and also that Inderjeet was killed by Ram.Finally Rama manages to kill Ravana and restores Vibhishna as King of Lanka and returns to Ayodhya.

At the end of book I waited for book to describe the UttraKhand of Ramyana in which Ram banishes Sita, I wnated to see Ashok Bankers's viewpoint on most conroversial point of whole Ramyana.But Banker steers clear saying that Uttra Khand was not work of Valmiki , but must be added later on.He says that it's impossible to beleive that rama could have banished sita from his wife.

The whole series transported me to the world of Rama and in fact it brought me more closre to him.I found myslef attached to him not as a God but as a human being ,the mortal whose song is Ramyana.And the coincediance that I finished the six part today, a day before RamNavmi, the birthday of Rama himself.With new beliefs and learnings from the books,Banker brought me more closer to my lord.

Jai shree Ram