Rama’s Sons

 

Narada had only told him a summary of the story, and Valmiki felt the need to know all the details. So, he sat down in the yoga position and immersed himself in deep meditation. And as if by a miracle, he saw the whole story unfold in front of him, true and vivid as if he were witnessing it in person. He began to write it, to compose the Ramayana.

By the time Rama returned to the throne of Ayodhya, Valmiki had completed the writing of the poem, consisting of 24,000 shlokas. After finishing it, he thought about how to communicate it to the whole world.

One day, the two princes Kusha and Lava who lived in the forest came to visit him. They were none other than Rama’s two sons born during Sita’s exile. Valmiki then taught them the Ramayana, asking them to go sing it in the cities of the world.

 The two boys were happy to satisfy the great sage’s desire. The fame of the two youngsters and the story they sang quickly spread everywhere.

Kusha and Lava Narrate the Ramayana to Their Father

On their wanderings, one day Kusha and Lava arrived in Ayodhya and began chanting the Ramayana in the streets of the fabulous city. As soon as King Rama learned that the two singers had arrived in his capital, he wanted to see them ignoring that they were his own children. He summoned them to the arena where he was conducting a great sacrifice and, when the two young men entered, he admired their grace and nobility of bearing.

“Your fame and the story you tell,” Rama told them, “have come to my knowledge. Everyone talks about it with great enthusiasm. I have been told that the composer is the venerable Valmiki Muni, one of the greatest and most honored erudites that exist. You can understand my curiosity. Please recite it here in front of me; sing the story of which I, myself, was the protagonist.”

And so, Kusha and Lava began to sing the great poem, the Ramayana.

 

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