King Janaka of Mithila organized a grand swayamvara of his beautiful daughter, Sita. A swayamvara was a ritual where kings and princes' from far and near would visit the king's court to ask for the princess's hand, but only the bravest would be selected. King Janaka announced that he had a mighty bow, which was blessed by Shiva. The one who could string the bow would marry Sita.

Many princes' tried but all failed. Nobody could even move the bow. Rama and Laxmana were also present. All eyes then went to Rama, when his turn came.

Rama easily lifted the bow with one hand and strung it with a thunderous twang . The bow broke into pieces.

Then, Sita walked up to Rama and garlanded him. The wedding was celebrated with great joy.