Parnasaala, Bhadrachalam

Parnasaala is the location of celebrated Panchavati from where Mother Sita was kidnapped. Parnasaala is a village associated with the Ramayana-era in the Bhadradri Kothagudem district of Telangana state in India. It lies at a distance of 35 kms from the famous temple town of Bhadrachalam.

As Bhadrachalam ever glorifies Lord Ramachandra, so does Parnasaala. Lying at an elevation of 55 meters on the banks of the sacred Godavari river, Parnasaala had hosted Lord Ramachandra along with His eternal consort Sita Devi and devoted brother Lakshmana during their exile period in the Treta yuga.

We could say that the Godavari river was witness to the uncommon activities of the Lord while He resided here. She is fortunate indeed!

I know what is going on in the mind now. It must be contradicting with the Panchavati of Nasik which is so widely known amongst the public. Nasik might be the place of Panchavati in Ramayana of some other Yuga. However the Ramayana of Valmiki which is the record of Prabhu Ramachandra’s lila in the 24th Treta Yuga of the Shweta Varaha Kalpa of Lord Brahma says that it is Bhadrachalam. The Valmiki Ramayana gives all the pointers towards Parnasaala of Bhadrachalam. It is THE location of Mother Sita’s kidnapping.

The history of Panchavati Parnasaala

In the older days, especially during the Ramayana-era, Parnasaala was referred to as Panchavati more commonly. The Aranya Khanda of Valmiki Ramayana details the arrival of Lord Rama in Parnasaala along with Sita Devi and Lakshmana after ten years into their exile in the Dandakaranya on the directions of Sage Agastya.

During the ten years of their exile in the Dandaka forest, Lord Rama and His brother Lakshmana upheld their duty to protect the sages living there. The trio were guided from one sage to another until they reached Sage Agastya who was very powerful.

Sage Agastya gave Lord Rama all the weapons he had to protect the sages living in the forest. He gave Lord Rama a transcendental bow called as Vishnu Dhanu made by Vishwakarma along with two inexhaustible quivers presented by Indra. The Sage presented Lord Rama with the sword of Lord Vishnu saying that Lord Vishnu used them to kill the demons.

He asked the Lord to establish dharma using these weapons. Moreover, Lord Rama was assured that Indra would send Him a chariot with Matali as the charioteer whenever He wanted.

Lord Rama, very humbly accepted the weapons and the instructions. Next day, Lord Rama requested Sage Agastya to suggest an ideal place to live for the rest of His exile period. In reply, Sage Agastya said the following:

“Oh Rama! You must know the history of the Dandaka forest. Dandaka, the brother of your ancestor Ikshvaku was the ruler of this forest. But he was cursed by Sage Bhrigu and hence, abandoned the forest. Following this, the Dandaka forest became uninhabited. The animals and birds too left the forest.

It became filled with huge trees and creepers. No sages came here thereafter. There were no rains nor winds. Sunshine could not enter the forest due to thick forest cover.

I came here from the Himalayas. After my arrival, changes started happening. The animals and birds started moving around freely. The winds blew softly and there were enough rains.

The sages came and established ashrams here. At the same time, the demons too came and settled here. They started harassing the sages.

Oh Rama! You are a great and valiant kshatriya. Destiny forced You to come here in order to establish peace and order in the Dandaka forest. It is Your duty to establish order.

Dandaka was forced to abandon the forest. You have come here to establish order as the representative of Ikshvaku. Please do this small help for the sages.”

Looking at Sita Devi, Sage Agastya continued saying as follows:

“Oh Rama! Your wife Sita lived in luxury. She has never experienced the forest life. As a devoted wife, She accompanied You to the forest. You should try to keep Her happy.

She is free from the faults and weakness of ordinary women. She is like Arundhati among the celestial women. She is pativrata (devoted to husband) and so will be remembered by everyone in the future.

Very near to this place is Panchavati. The sacred river Godavari flows by Panchavati. There are plenty of trees full of fruits and flowers. You can find plenty of roots there.

It is an ideal place to live. Great events are set to happen and hence, it is important that you should go and stay in Panchavati.”

Lord Rama travels to Panchavati Parnasaala

Lord Rama, Sita Devi and Lakshmana offered their respects to Sage Agastya and left for Panchavati. On the way, they saw the Nyagrodha tree which Sage Agastya had asked them to worship. Lord Rama saw an eagle perched on the tree.

The eagle introduced himself as Jatayu saying that he was King Dasaratha’s friend and hence, would protect them all. Moreover, he said that he would protect Sita Devi when the brothers would go out. Being happy with Jatayu, all the four continued on to Panchavati.

On reaching Panchavati, Lord Rama asked Lakshmana to select a place to stay. Being a very devoted brother, Lakshmana simply took orders from Lord Rama only. Hence, Lord Rama went around the banks of the sacred Godavari and selected a beautiful place to construct His ashram surrounded by many trees with flowers and fruits. Lakshmana gathered all the materials required and constructed a beautiful ashram at the site selected by Lord Rama.

The demons are killed by Lord Rama at Panchavati Parnasaala

Sita Devi was very happy at their new dwelling place in Panchavati. They discussed how the people of Ayodhya and Bharatha along with the three queens would be living.

They led a peaceful life in Panchavati under the watch of Jatayu. One day Shurpanaka, the sister of Ravana happened to see the ever-handsome Lord Rama and proposed to marry Him. But Lord Rama sent her to Lakshmana saying that He had taken the eka-patni vrata(one wife pledge).

When Shurpanaka went to Lakshmana, he understood her intention to kill Sita Devi. He cut her nose and sent her away. Shurpanaka went and complained to her brother Khara, the ruler of Janasthana who sent 14 of his able commanders to kill Lord Rama.

After moving Sita Devi to a safe place, Lord Rama killed all the 14 commanders with His arrows. Hearing this, Khara summoned his brothers Dushana and Trishira and ordered them to go with an army of 14000 soldiers and kill Lord Rama. As earlier, Lord Rama killed all the 14000 soldiers along with Dushana and Trishira. This incident took place at Dummugudem near Parnasaala.

Seeing this, the sages and celestial denizens became happy that Janasthana was now free from the control of demons. They showered flowers on Lord Rama while Lakshmana fell at His lotus feet and Sita Devi embraced Him. In this way, Lord Rama, Sita Devi and Lakshmana spent their time in Parnasaala upholding their dharma for which they had come to the forest.

After some time, Ravana kidnapped Sita Devi from Parnasaala by sending his uncle Maricha in the form of a golden deer to deceive the brothers. When Jatayu tried to prevent the kidnapping of Sita Devi, his wings were cut by the sword of Ravana. Jatayu fell near Parnasaala at Jatayu Paaka/Yetapaaka while his wings fell at Rekkapalli.

Holy places in Parnasaala

The place of Lord Rama’s dwelling in Panchavati Parnasaala is marked by a small hut displaying the figurines of Lord Rama, Sita Devi and Lakshmana. Apart from this, the lotus footprints of Lord Rama and Sita Devi are preserved here.

There is a lake nearby called Sita Vaagu where Sita Devi used to bathe. You can see red and yellow stones which She used to apply kumkum and turmeric on Herself. The imprints of Sita Devi’s saree can also be seen.

A pit indicates the very spot where Sita Devi was abducted by Ravana. A hill on the opposite side of the sacred Godavari has marks left by the Pushpaka Vimana of Ravana while kidnapping Sita Devi. This place is called as Ratham Kondelu. Even grass does not grow there.

There is a temple dedicated to Lord Rama at Parnasaala in the form of Yoga Rama. People here call the Deity as Shokarama which is not true.

How to reach Parnasaala

Parnasaala is closest to Bhadrachalam located 35 kms away. You can reach Parnasaala easily by reaching Bhadrachalam. If you choose the Bhadrachalam Tour of Tirtha Yatra, you can forget all your worries.

Regular modes of transportation to reach Bhadrachalam are as follows:

By Road: Bhadrachalam is connected to important cities in Andhra Pradesh via state buses. Frequent buses leave from Vijayawada, Hanumakonda, Rajamundhry and Hyderabad. There is a bus every one hour from Vijayawada and Hanumakonda till 10:30 PM.

By Rail: ‘Bhadrachalam Road’ is the nearest railway station located in Kothagudem town 40 kms away. You can board a bus or hire a taxi from here to Bhadrachalam.

By Air: The nearest airport is at Rajamundhry around 190 kms away. You can fly domestic airlines into the airport and hire a taxi or board a state bus to Bhadrachalam.

Lord Rama resides in Parnasaala eternally to protect the Sages

Parnasaala, lying on the banks of the sacred Godavari, is no less a holy dham than Ayodhya itself. Lord Rama made His residence here along with Sita Devi and Lakshmana for the remainder of His exile. This alone glorifies Parnasaala.

During His time here, Lord Rama exhibited the opulence of renunciation by living a simple life away from His royal palace in Ayodhya. Moreover, He upheld His kshatriya dharma here by killing more than 14000 demons headed by the brothers of the demoniac king Ravana. The destruction of Ravana began from here.

The transcendental brothers and Sita Devi left us various memories to remember always and meditate. Hence, there is no doubt that they are very much present in every nook and corner of Parnasaala. Your search for them will never be futile! Jaya Sita-Ram!

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