Long ago, in the lush green forest of Panchavati, Prince Rama, Princess Sita, and his brother Lakshmana were living happily.
But one day, Shurpanakha, a demoness and the sister of the mighty demon King Ravana, wandered into the forest. When she saw Rama, she was amazed by his handsomeness. She disguised herself as a beautiful woman and approached Rama boldly, "O handsome man! Marry me and come live with me!"

Rama laughed kindly and said, "I am already married to Sita. You should ask my brother Lakshmana."

When Shurpanakha turned to Lakshmana, he teased her, "I am just a servant! You deserve someone greater."

Shurpanakha was angry and embarrassed at the rejections. She went back into her demoness form and tried to attack Sita out of jealousy. But Lakshmana quickly stepped in, drawing his knife, and cut off her nose.

Shurpanakha ran crying all the way to Lanka and told Ravana, "Brother, they insulted me! Sita is so beautiful — she must be yours!"

Ravana's eyes flashed with anger. He decided right then: "How dare they insult my sister! I will take Sita away and make her my queen!"

Ravana asked his uncle, the demon Maricha, for help. Maricha magically transformed himself into a sparkling golden deer and started wandering near Rama’s hut.

The golden deer immediately caught Sita's attention. She gasped and turned to Rama, "Look! A golden deer! Can you please catch it for me?"

Rama smiled at her sweet request. "Of course, my dear," he said.

Turning to Lakshmana, Rama said seriously, "Stay here and protect Sita. Don't leave her side at any cost."

Rama chased after the deer. But after a while, Maricha, knowing his trick was almost over, cried out loudly in Rama's voice, "Help, Lakshmana! Help, Sita!"

Hearing the cries, Sita panicked. "Lakshmana, go help your brother! He is in danger!"

But Lakshmana shook his head. "No, I have promised not to leave you alone. Also, my brother is mighty. No demon can harm him. This must be a trick!"

Sita, frightened and upset, pleaded and even accused him of not caring for Rama. Heartbroken but unable to refuse Sita any longer, Lakshmana said, "Very well. But first, I will protect you with a magic barrier."

He drew a bright, glowing line (the famous Lakshmana Rekha) around their hut with his arrow and said, "As long as you stay inside this line, no evil can touch you. Please, do not step out!"

Then, with a heavy heart, Lakshmana rushed into the forest.

Meanwhile, Rama caught up with the golden deer, which suddenly transformed back into Maricha! With his last breath, Maricha yelled loudly in Rama's voice again: "Help, Sita! Help, Lakshmana!"

Realizing the trick, Rama’s heart sank. "Oh no! It was a trap to separate us!" He ran back toward the hut as fast as he could.

Meanwhile, as Sita waited, an old, weak-looking sage came hobbling toward the hut. It was Ravana in disguise! He tried to cross the Lakshmana Rekha but the magical line gave him a mighty shock like lightning! He realized: he could not cross the Lakshmana Rekha. He would have to lure Sita to cross the line.

Ravana called out sweetly, "O kind lady! I am hungry and tired. Please give me some food and water!"

Sita looked at him. His old figure melted her heart. She picked up some fruits and approached the Lakshmana Rekha, dangling the fruits over the line.

But Ravana was clever. He stood far away from the Lakshmana Rekha. He said, pretending to be offended, "Why are you handing the food from so far? This is so disrespectful."

Sita remembered Lakshmana’s warning. She didn't want to step out to hand him the fruits.

Noticing her hesitation, the sage called out again, "If you can't feed a poor old sage, it is okay. I will leave hungry."

"Surely an old monk can do no harm," Sita thought to herself. She crossed the line to offer fruits to the sage.

At that very moment, Ravana dropped his sage disguise and turned back into his true terrifying demon form! Sita shrieked and tried to run back into the cottage. But in one swift move, Ravana grabbed her and carried her into his flying chariot, the Pushpaka Vimana.

Sita cried out, "Rama! Lakshmana! Save me!"

Seeing the abduction, the birds, trees, and animals of the forest cried too. Even the mighty eagle Jatayu tried to stop Ravana — but that’s a story for another time.

Ravana sped away across forests, rivers, and oceans toward his golden kingdom of Lanka, while Sita kept crying for Rama to rescue her. She dropped her jewels along the way, hoping that Rama and Lakshmana would be able to trace her route.