The Rishi Vishwamitra had his abode in Siddhashram in the forests of the present days Buxar.
When Ram, Laxman and Vishwamitra, setout for Janakpur for participating in the 'Dhanush Yajna',organized by King Janak.On their way, they halted at sage Gautam's ashram, where his beautiful wife Ahalya had been cursed by him and turned to stone. When Ram heard about her tragic story from Vishwamitra, he touched the stone statue and rescued Ahalya, who came to life. Sage Gautam and Ahalya were reunited. The place where this incident probably occurred is now called Ahalya Asthan near Kamtaulin the Darbhanga District.
Thereafter, Vishwamitra with Ram and Laxman arrived at Janakpur. They camped in a mango- garden. Next morning, Vishwamitra ordered both Ram and Laxman for fetching flowers from the royal garden of King Janak. Ram there first saw Sita who had come for worship of her family goddess in the temple inside. This place is now recognized as Phullahar village in the Madhubani district.
When Ram was in the forests on self-exile, Ravan, the king of Lanka, kidnapped Sita. It is believed that vulture king Jatayu had challenged Ravan against abducted Sita, at Giddheshwar in Jamui district. According to another myth, Sita had to undergo a 'fire-test' after her return from Lanka when Ram finally killed Ravan in a decisive fight. When Sita came out of the fire unhurt, she took a bath in a nearby water-pool to cool-down the heat generated in her body by the massive flames. The cool water of the pool absorbed the entire heat from her body and itself turned into a hot-water-pool. The Sita-Kund of Munger is believed to be the said pool.
Gaya Is another spot in Bihar associated with the myth of Ram. It is said that Ram had come here to perform 'Shraddh (the last rites)' of his father, Dashrath. The Ram Shila Hill is the place in Gaya town where such rites are still performed by Hindus.
Many other places in Bihar also, by and large, are taken to be associated with the story of Sita & Ram.
Tar, bhojpur
Situated about 10-kms northwest of Piro the village derives its name from Tarka, a giantess killed by Lord Ram. There is an old tank in the village that is said to be the wrestling ground of Tarka.
Ahirauli,Buxar
Situated about 5-kms northeast of Buxar, this village has a temple of Devi Ahalya. According to local tradition it dates back to the pre-historic ages. Legend is that, Ahalya was transformed into stone as a result of curse of her husband, Rishi Gautam, and she could be redeemed only when Lord Ram Chandravisited her place.Ram Rekha ghar, buxar
According to the legends, Lord Ramchandra and his younger brother Laxman with their teacher Rishi Vishwamitra had crossed the river Ganga here on their way to Janakpur where he later took part in the Sita Swayamvara. So, this place has become an important pilgrimage to the Hindus.
On the 18th day of solemn month of Paush, corresponding approximately to the 14th January of each year, an undoubtedly biggest fair is held here on the Makar Sankranti day. On this day the sun enters the sidereal of zodiac. This fair is also popularly known as Khichri fair. Roughly 40 to 50 thousand men, women and children , assemble in the town, camp there at several places and bathe in the Ganges at this famous Ramrekha Ghat. The bathing in the river Gangausually continues for three days.
Ahalya Asthan, Darbhanga
The village is situated about 24-kms northwest of Darbhanga and about 4-kms from Kamtaul Railway Station. It is known for the temple locally called as Ahalya Asthan which is associated with the well known legend of the sage Gautamand his wife Ahalya as told in the epics and the Puranas. Inside the shrine is a flat stone said to contain the footprints of Sita, wife of Ram, as the main object of worship.A fair is held here every year in the month of Chaitra on Ramnavami day that lasts for several days.
Pretshila Hill, Gaya
About 8-kms northwest of Gaya, the 873-ft high Pretshila hill is situated. The meaning of the name is the hill of ghosts and it is sacred to Yama, the Hindu god of hell, and forms one of the sacred places of pilgrimage. On the top of the hill is a small temple appropriately dedicated to Yama (The God of death) . It is a common faith that by the due observance of the Shraddha or last rites by offering balls of flour and rice called pindas, pilgrims will ensure the deliverance of the souls of their ancestors from the realm of Yama and secure their admittance to the paradise of Vishnu. A long flight of stone steps built by a pious resident of Kolkata in 1774, leads to the shrine, which contains a rude piece of rock marked with a golden line, before which the pilgrims place the pindas for the repose of the spirits of their ancestors. At the foot of the hill are three tanks named Sati, Nigra and Sukha, and there is a fourth tank called Ramkund on the summit near the temple of Yama, in which it is said that Ram himself bathed. Whoever bathes in this tank is said to have rubbed out his sins, and whoever recites the proper mantras or spells with the usual offerings of Shraddha and pindas is freed from pain.Giddheshwar,Jamui
According to local legends, the epic fight between the vulture Jatayu and the demon Ravanwas taken place here on the hill that is situated about 13-kms south of Jamui, while the latter was abducting Sita. There is a temple of Lord Shiva, which draws big crowds on the occasion of Shivaratri and Maghi Purnima.
Kako,Jehanabad
The village is the headquarters of the block of the same name and is situated on the Jehanabad-Biharsharif road, about 10-kms east of Jehanabad railway station. According to a local legend, Ram Chandra's stepmother, Rani Kaikeyi of Ayodhyalived here for sometime and the village took its name after her. The village has also a tomb of Hazrat Bibi Kamaal Sahiba, a great Muslim lady saint. It is said that this lady was the aunt of Hazrat Makhdum Saheb of Biharsharif and possessed divine powers. There is also a temple in the northeast corner of the village within which a very old image of the Sun God is installed.
Singheshwar Asthan,Madhepura
Madhepura, is the headquarters of the block of the same name. The village is famous for an ancient Shiva temple. According to the legend, Sringa Rishi established the Shiva lingam at the Singheshwar Asthan temple. It was Sringa Rishi who had performed the Putrayeshti Yajna for King Dasharath and later was blessed with four sons. The impact of this legend is seen in a regular visit of a large number of barren women for offering puja here. Hari Charan Choudhury, a merchant, constructed the present temple over the ancient lingam about 200 years ago. A month-long fair is held on the occasion of ''Shivaratri' which is one of the largest in the state.
Phullahar,Madhubani
The village is situated about 6-kms west of the block headquarters at Umgaon under Harlakhi P.S. The village contains the temple of Goddess Girija. It is said that Sita, the daughter of King Janaka, used to come here every day to worship the goddess. Lord Ram saw her for the first time at this place.
Sita-Kund,Munger
A village about 6-kms east of the Munger town contains a hot spring known as the Sita-Kund spring, which is so called after the well-known episode of the Ramayana. Ram, after rescuing his wife Sita from the demon king Ravana, suspected that she could not have maintained her honor intact, and Sita, to prove her chastity, agreed to enter a blazing fire. She came out of the fiery ordeal unscathed, and imparted to the pool in which she bathed, the heat she had absorbed from the fire. The hot spring is now enclosed in a masonry reservoir and is visited by large numbers of pilgrims, especially at the full moon of Magh. The water is beautifully clear and limpid, and sends up numerous bubbles from its rocky bed. The temperature of his spring varies in a remarkable manner and goes to the highest of 138' F and even above.
Sitamarhi,Nawada
This is a small village about 32-kms from Nawada and is a place of great religious and mythological importance. There is an elliptical cave carved inside a huge hemispherical block of granite rock. The legend has it that it was in this cave that Sita had to take refuge after having been exiled by Ram. Built by Vishwakarma, the divine builder at the behest of saint poet Valmiki, as the legend goes, it was the heaven for Sita and provided her protection in the dense forest, which was infested with wild beasts. One and a half kilometers northeast of Sitamarhi there is a village called Barat, where the saint poet Valmiki is said to have lived when Sita was exiled. It was on the wide high level ground near this cave that Sita's sons Lav and Kush are said to have fought against Rama's army.
Rivilganj, Godna,Saran
The town runs from east to west and is closely built along the bank of the Gogra river which in the rains is as much as a mile in breadth. The older name of the place is Godna. It is regarded locally as the traditional residence or ashram of Gautam, the founder of the school of Nyaya philosophy. Here it is said, he lived with his wife Ahalya in the days of Ram Chandra who visited him on his way to Janakpur. The legend is that Indra became enamored of Ahalya and visited her in the guise of her husband. Gautam saw him as he left her room and cursed him with perpetual loss of virility. Ahalya was changed into a stone till Ram should come and deliver her. Ram did it on his way to Juanakpr with Laxman and Vishwamitra. A shrine has been built on the spot where Gautam's hut is believed to have stood.
Janki Temple,Sitamarhi
About 1.5-kms off the Sitamarhi railway station and the bus stand, this temple is traditionally being considered to be the birthplace of Sita or Janki, the daughter of King Janak. This temple, however, seems to be built about 100 years ago.
Janki Temple,Punaura(Sitamarhi)
This temple is about 5-kms southwest of Sitamarhi. It also stakes the same claim to be the birthplace of Sita and is considered to be a sacred place where people go for a pilgrimage.
Haleshwar Asthan, Sitamarhi
This is an ancient temple of Lord Shiva about 3-kms northwest of Sitamarhi. According to myths the King of Videha on the occasion of Putrayeshti Yajna, founded this temple.
Panth Pakar,Sitamarhi
An age-old banyan tree still stands here about 8-kms northeast of Sitamarhi. It is said that when Sita left Janakpur in a palanquin for Ayodhya after her marriage to Shri Ram, she was given rest for a while under this very banyan tree.
Ramchaura,Vaishali
The place is situated in Vaishali block where a fair is held every year on Ramnavami day. The local tradition has it that Lord Ramchandra had a stopover here for a bath on his way to Janakpur. There are some marks on stone, which are said to be his footprints.
Balmikinagar,West Champaran
This is a village on the Indo-Nepal border 42 kms northwest of Bagaha to which it is connected by a metalled road. A barrage has been constructed here on the Gandak River for the purpose of irrigation, which is known as Tirhut Canal. Besides an old Shiva temple constructed by the Bettiah Raj, there are also ancient temples of Nara Devi and Gauri Shankar at Balmikinagar.
Chanki Garh, West Champaran
Also known as Janakigarh, this village is situated about 9 -kms east of Ramnagarrailway station. There is a large mound in the eastern part of the village. It is a mass of solid brickwork and is 90' high. It was probably originally a fort and the remains of the fortification can still be seen, besides some insignificant shrines. The local tradition asserts that it was a fort of King Janaka.
Sitakund,East Champaran
This is a village in the headquarters subdivision situated near the Pipra railway station, 16 kms t the southeast of Motihari and about half kilometers to the north of Madhuban on the Sikrahna river. The village contains the remains of an ancient fort the shape of which is an irregular square, 450 ft. long on each side, with large round bastions at the corners and in the middle of each face. Inside the fort is a holy tank, to which the name Sitakund peculiarly applies as Sita, the wife of Ram, bathed there. It is a deep circular pond surrounded by brick walls with four ghats leading down to it. A great fair is held there on the Ramnavami when several thousands of pious Hindus assemble to do honour to Ram and Sita. The are several temples and shrines round it; the principal temple, which stands near the western side of the tank, enshrines images of Sun, Hanuman and Vishnu, an image of Ravana, with 20 arms and 10 heads, five of which only are shown on the carving; another of Mahish-mardini or Durga in the act of killing a buffalo demon and two images of Ganesh, one seated with four arms and one dancing with eight arms, etc.
Kumkum Bhagya
Anupamaa
