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Story of Dandakaranya Forest – Story of Dandaka Forest in the Ramayana

During their exile period Bhagvan Sri Ram, Mata Sita and Lakshman reaches the Dandakaranya forest. It was a dreadful forest and few dared to cross it. The story of Dandaka forest is symbolic.

Legend has it that Dandakaranya was once a flourishing kingdom with a huge population of people. It was known as Janasthan and was ruled of King Danda. During a hunting expedition, King Danda came across a beautiful woman Aruja. The king was smitten by her beauty and violated her.



Aruja was the daughter of Sage Shukra. She ran crying to her father. On hearing the Adharma performed by a king, Sage Shukra cursed that dust storms and thunderstorms would wipe away Danda’s kingdom of Janasthan. Soon no trace of the kingdom was left. In due course of time, the land became the most dreadful forest.

Turning a kingdom into forest symbolically suggest that when people do not respect and practice Dharma, the place is no different from a jungle.

Even today, Dandakaranya is a stretch of forest that runs through the states of Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Maharashtra, and Telangana.