SANJEEVANI
War, Devotion, and the Fire That Saved a Kingdom
Book II of the Hanuman Ji Trilogy
by Pankaj Sharma
On a foreign shore where faith must become a road, a servant chooses speed over certainty-lifting a mountain when a brother's breath hangs by a thread, and returning it when the work is done. Sanjeevani is the epic heart of the Hanuman Ji Trilogy: a reverent, cinematic retelling of the Ramayana's war years-bridges raised, parley offered, sorcery faced, arrogance ended.
From the moment the vanara host gathers on the beach, the story moves with disciplined fire. Stones float and a blue-lit bridge teaches the sea obedience. Diplomacy fails in Ravana's court; Vibhishana chooses law over blood. The first clashes thunder; Indrajit's weapons bind heroes in night and dread-until Garuda's breath restores them. Proof of Sita steadies the army. When Lakshmana falls to a celestial shaft, Hanuman races north through illusions and storm to Dronagiri, where the choice is too urgent to risk a guess: he lifts the whole mountain. Life returns; war sharpens. Kumbhakarna rises and falls; Indrajit meets his end; and at last Rama and Ravana face one another while the gods look on-not for spectacle, but for proof. Victory arrives without swagger; its cost is counted in ash, bread, and bowed heads.
What you'll find insideHanuman's voice at the center-a first-person current braided with close third-person scenes for Rama, Sita, Lakshmana, Mandodari, Vibhishana, and others.
War with restraint: consequence over gore; the work of healing, feeding prisoners, and mending rope shown alongside battle.
Women with gravity: Mandodari's order amid grief; Trijata's witness in Ashokavana; Sita's steadiness that corrects rooms.
The ordinary hands of an epic: a drum-woman, a flute-boy, a knot-boy named Bala, and an ink-stained clerk-original figures honoring the quiet labor that keeps legends upright.
A living ethic: "Be exact. Be kind. Be right." The mountain is a policy as much as a miracle-when choice is uncertain, carry the fullest help you can; then return what you borrow.
For readers who loveMythology retellings that are devotional yet modern; literary epic with cinematic flow; grounded spiritual themes; the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, Kamban, Tulsidas, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, Amish Tripathi-stories where courage is precise and compassion uncompromising.
Can you start here?Yes. Book II stands on its own. A concise Cast of Characters and brief Glossary/Pronunciation Guide help new readers step in without friction.
The promise of this volumeSanjeevani keeps faith with the lineage while choosing clarity over clutter and mercy over noise. Bridges rise because craft and trust agree. Sorcery fades before witness. A mountain travels and comes home without scratches if possible. And a king who bows first reminds us that dharma is not a shout but a habit.
Plus: A crisp Prologue to set the stakes, 25 tightly paced chapters, and an Epilogue ("The Work That Remains") that turns victory into duty. The prose blends cinematic cuts with prayerful stillness-short lines for impact, lyrical passages for breath. Side notes illuminate the four healing herbs, rules of parley, and the "grammar of the bridge" without slowing the story. Thoughtful content handling (battle, ritual, grief) makes this suitable for teens and adults. Read as a standalone or continue to Book III, where the quiet revolutions after war-governance, memory, and mercy-claim center stage.