Sita Swayamvar Staged at Ramleela, Parshuram-Lakshman Dialogue Wins Audience Applause

Ratia: Shakti Natak Club, Ratia, presented the wedding of Lord Ram and Goddess Sita on the fourth day of its historic Ramleela, being organised at the Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Gurudwara Ground in Shakti Nagar. The audience also warmly appreciated the dialogues depicting the heated exchange between Lord Parshuram and Lakshman.

The programme on the fourth day, featuring Sita's Swayamvar, was attended by Kali Mata Temple Committee President Shyamlal Bansal, former Punjabi Sabha president Navneet Mehta, Lunch Club Ratia Town president Kapish Gupta, and renowned paediatrician Dr Ramesh Gupta as chief guests. The event was presided over by Shakti Natak Club president Rajesh Setia.

Several prominent personalities were also present, including Satish Sardana, Sonu Grover, Rakesh Thakral, Bhuvnesh Chugh, Mukesh Chugh, Sandeep Jasuja, Subhash Gilhotra, Lovely Chopra, Vinny Garg, Vipin Garg, Dr Naresh Jindal, Krishna Taneja and Satish Chopra, among others.

Grand Presentation of Sita's Swayamvar

During Tuesday night's performance, the audience witnessed the grand staging of Sita's Swayamvar in the city of Mithila. King Janak's palace was beautifully decorated, with the streets adorned with decorations and the palace illuminated with flower garlands, lamps and colourful lights. Kings, princes and brave warriors arrived from far and wide to participate in the Swayamvar of Goddess Sita.

King Janak took his seat on the throne, accompanied by royal priests, ministers and courtiers. A massive bow belonging to Lord Shiva was placed at the centre of the stage. Its grandeur left the assembled kings astonished.

King Janak had made a solemn vow regarding the marriage of his daughter, Janaki. He declared that Goddess Sita would marry the warrior who could lift Lord Shiva's divine bow and string it.

Addressing the assembly, King Janak announced that his daughter would not marry an ordinary man but a brave warrior capable of lifting the mighty bow of Lord Shiva. Several powerful kings and princes from different lands attempted to lift it, but none could even move it.

Seeing King Janak disappointed, Sage Vishwamitra instructed Lord Ram to step forward. Following his guru's command, Lord Ram effortlessly lifted the bow. As he attempted to string it, the bow broke in two with a tremendous sound that echoed through the three worlds. Goddess Sita then placed the varmala around Lord Ram's neck, symbolising her choice of him as her husband.

Fierce Exchange Between Parshuram and Lakshman Wins Applause

The thunderous sound of the bow breaking brought Sage Parshuram, a devoted disciple of Lord Shiva, to King Janak's assembly. Enraged at seeing the bow of his revered deity broken, he demanded to know who was responsible. He warned that the person who had broken it should step forward, or all the kings present would face his wrath.

Witnessing Parshuram's furious demeanour, Lakshman stepped forward and responded sarcastically. He remarked that they had broken many small bows during childhood, yet no one had reacted with such anger. He questioned why Parshuram was so attached to the old bow.

Lakshman's fearless and sharp words further inflamed Parshuram's anger. Pointing towards his battle axe, he declared that it could destroy even unborn children and warned Lakshman that he was speaking recklessly, as though under the influence of death itself.

As the confrontation escalated, Lord Ram intervened with folded hands and a calm, respectful voice. He said, “O revered sage, the person who broke Lord Shiva's bow must be one of your own servants.”

Still doubtful, Parshuram decided to test Lord Ram. He handed him his divine Vaishnava bow, known as Sharanga, and challenged him to string it. Lord Ram effortlessly strung the bow.

Witnessing this extraordinary feat, Parshuram realised that Lord Ram was none other than an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. His anger immediately subsided. He offered prayers to Lord Ram, blessed him and departed for Mount Mahendra to resume his penance.

The audience greatly appreciated the dramatic presentation, particularly the intense and engaging dialogue between Parshuram and Lakshman.

Guests Honoured at the Conclusion of the Programme

At the conclusion of the fourth day's performance, the chief guests were honoured by Shakti Natak Club committee president Rajesh Setia, along with Ravi Midha, Anshul Batra, Sachin Lalit, Karnail Singh, Anil Rukhaya, Prince Kalu Taneja, Shati Kakkar, Ramesh Jatana, Vijay Taneja, Deepu Chilana, Ashu Taneja, Sonu Chilana, Manohar Lal, Titu Taneja and other members of the executive committee.

The guests were presented with traditional stoles and mementoes as a mark of respect.