Prince of Ayodhya
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Prince of Ayodhya is the first installment of a six-part series of books written by Ashok Banker, which chronicles the events of the Ramayana in a modern retelling of the Indian epic. The series revolves around the stories of Rama, Lakshman, and Sita and their struggles against the demon-king Ravana, highlighting the intense love of Rama and Sita and the young prince's adherence to Dharma.
[edit] Story
The story begins with Rama's first encounter with the demonlord Ravana, King of the Asuras, a race of evil beings who represent everything against that which mankind stands for. As he dreams, he is filled with images detailing the destruction and rape of his home city, Ayodhya, the capital of Kosala, kingdom of Dasaratha, Rama's father. The prince frantically slices through his room, demonstrating considerable martial skill, fearful of his dreams.
Meanwhile, the great seer Vishwamitra, one of the Seven Sages of Hindu theology, proceeds towards Ayodhya. As he travels, he becomes aware of some strange disturbance, and changes his form to that of a Shudra hunter, a low-caste marksman. As he walks, Jatayu, leader of Ravana's air force, tracks his movement and inspects the city of Ayodhya. Only a few seconds before Vishwamitra walks through Ayodhya's massive gates, however, a second being who looks exactly like him is seen proceeding through it...
In the palace, First Queen Kausalya, Dasaratha's first wife and mother of Rama, is paid a visit by the King. At first, she spurns him for not having stepped into her palace for the past year and spending all of his time at the palace of the Second Queen Kaikeyi. Letting out her frustration and anger through sarcastic words, she describes the hurt that she feels. Dasaratha begs for her forgiveness, and tells her that in reality, he always loved Kausalya more as a wife and the mother of his eldest son. He tells her two pieces of information that shock her: the first, that her son Rama is to be coronated on his sixteenth birthday as the new King of Ayodhya, and that
[edit] Commentary
The Ramayana is an ancient Indian epic that has gone through many retellings and versions in different languages and styles, including a live-action TV serial and a film (currently in production for release in 2008). Banker, in his foreword to the text, remarks that his version is by no means authoritative, and it merely follows in the footsteps of other authors of the Ramayana, including Valmiki, Tulsidas, and Kamban. He states his intent as a desire to portray the nature of ancient India and the epic story of the Ramayana through a medium that appeals to modern writing.
The story takes significant liberties from the original Ramayana by Valmiki. The scene in which the seer-mage Vishwamitra confronts Kala-Nemi, acting as a false copy of himself, is entirely fictional. Kala-Nemi, in fact, does not appear in the original Ramayana until well near the end of the text and plays a very short (albeit important) role.
