Present-day Ayodhya is identified as the location of Saketa, an important city of the Kosala Mahajanapada in the first millennium BCE, which later served as its capital. The 9th century Jain work, Adi Purana, states that Ayodhya "does not exist by name alone but by the merit of being unconquerable by enemies—A-yudhya." Around the fourth century, the Gupta Emperor Skandagupta moved his capital to Saketa, and renamed it Ayodhya after the legendary city. Multiple texts, including Kalidasa's Raghuvamsha, mention Ayodhya as another name for Saketa.
The story of Rama, whether from the first epic poem by Valmiki in Sanskrit or the Ramcharitmanas in Awadhi dialect by Goswami Tulsidas, is enshrined in the minds and hearts of the people residing at Ayodhya. Ram Katha is an internalized concept at Ayodhya. There are discourses held at various fora but the known scholars hold the belief of Rama Ekakaar, being one with Rama. The values associated with Rama are disseminated, propagated and received as a 'Prasad of Ram’.
The Ethos of RamaA popular and well-respected saint of Ramanuj Sampraday of the Vaishnav tradition, Swami Raghavacharya says that Shri Ramayana is the First Poem or Adi Mahakavya, the seed for all poetry. Acharya Mithilesh Nandini Sharan, in charge of Shri Laxman Kila, and the famous Shri Anadi Panchmukhi Mahadev Mandir, adds that the epic presents Rama as the ideal man, the role model whose ideals and morals can be followed for the betterment of society for years to come. Hailing from the lineage of the Ayodhya royal family, Dr. Yatindra Mishra, a poet and scholar of music and cinema, says that Rama is the epitome of truth, of dharma. He is called the ‘Satya Sandh’. And this is His land. The ethos of Ayodhya is ‘Ram Naam’, the name of Rama. The common man of Ayodhya is far removed from the commercialisation, and pomp and show, associated with Rama. The concept of Rama, his story, his values, are part of the daily life of every resident of this city.