The months passed and one day Ram was meditating when he sensed a disturbance in the forest. The birds were flying from the trees and animals were scurrying away to hide in the undergrowth. Lakshman climbed to the top of a tall tree to see what was causing the turmoil. ' It is Bharat,' he shouted down to Ram. 'He is coming with an army of men. o doubt he wants to make his throne more secure by killing us.' Ram shook his head wisely . 'Bharat is a good man,' he replied. 'It is because he loves us that he has made the journey. He probably wants us to come back to Ayodhya.' Ram's words calmed his quick?tempered brother. When Bharat arrived he greeted his brothers with affection. Then he said, 'You should be in Ayodhya, Ram. Our father has died of grief and our country needs its true king. You should be on the throne, ruling the kingdom . Let me remain here to serve out your exile fo r you while you return to Ayodhya.' Ram hugged his brother and sa id gen tl y. 'Our father gave his word to Kaikeyi that her wishes would be fulfilled. It is our duty to ensure his word is kept.' Bharat and the wise man Vasishta who had accompanied him pleaded with Ram to change his mind, but Ram was determined to obey his father's instructions as well as he could. Reali zing this, Bharat held out a pair of golden slippers he had brought with him. ' Put your feet into these a moment,' he told Ram and when Ram had done so, Bharat picked up the slippers reverently. ' I will place these slippers by your throne as a token that it is really your ,' he said, 'and I will rule the kingdom in your name until you return. But if you do not return in fourteen years, I will burn myself on a funeral pyre.' Then he left his brothers and returned to Ayodhya. After Bharat had left, Ram decided to move o n. The three travelled deeper into the forest and soon met some hermits. 'We are constantly plagued br the demons and other monsters which infest this forest,' said the holy men. 'They kill several of us each day, just for sport. We know you are Ram the mighty warrior. We want you to give us your word that you will protect us from these fearsome monsters.' Ram promised to defend the holy men and the three continued their journey into the forest until they met a wise man named Sutikshin. 'I can see that you will have many demons to fight in the future,' Sutikshin told them, 'and you will often be the conquerur. But beware of a gazelle who plays in a forest glade for n IS a sign of ill fortune.' one of them understood h1s my\tenous words, but they thanked him and set off agam on their journey. After a time the'' arm•ed at a lake where they heard exquisite,.o1ces smgmg, the voices of five heavenly maidens who had once descended there from heaven. Ram decided to build a home with Sita and Lakshman on the shores of the beautiful lake. For ten years they lived there and Ram continued to keep his promise to protect the holy men from the monsters and demons of the forest. He did it so well that eventually there were no more monsters. Ram and his companions decided to set out on their travels. On their way, they met an enormous vu lture who introduced himself as J atayu, the king of birds. 'I was a friend of your dead father,' Jatayu said, 'and I want you to consider me your friend as wel l. ' Ram thanked Jatayu and the three continued on their way until they arrived at a place called Panchavati where they decided to stay. But they were not destined to remain there long. A demoness named Shurpanakha saw Ram one day and fell in love with him. She transformed herself into a beautiful young woman and went to Ram. 'Become my husband,' she said to him. 'I will eat Sita and we can roam the forests happily together.' Ram could not be tempted. 'I love my wife dearly . You must look elsewhere for a husband.' Slighted, Shurpanakha tried to kill Sita, but