The Divine Birth
The birth of Lord Rama was not an ordinary event but a preordained cosmic intervention to restore balance and righteousness (*dharma*) to the world. This section walks you through the celestial context and the earthly rituals that led to his divine incarnation.
A Cosmic Plea
The world was under the tyrannical rule of the demon king Ravana. Granted a boon of near-invincibility, he terrorized gods and mortals alike, disrupting cosmic order. Unable to defeat him, the celestial beings and Mother Earth appealed to Lord Vishnu, the preserver, for help. Vishnu promised to incarnate as a mortal man—the one being Ravana had arrogantly overlooked in his quest for power—to vanquish evil and restore *dharma*.
The Sacred Ritual
On Earth, King Dasharatha of Ayodhya was childless. On the advice of sages, he performed the *Putrakameshti Yajna*, a sacred fire sacrifice for progeny. From the flames emerged a divine being with a vessel of *payasam* (sweet pudding). The king distributed this divine offering among his three queens, who then conceived. On the ninth day of the month of Chaitra, Lord Rama was born to Queen Kausalya, fulfilling both a king's prayer and a cosmic need.