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Rama the Steadfast: An Early Form of the Ramayana
Warrior-prince Rama is about to be crowned Young King, when he hears the devastating news that his father, King of Ayodhya, has been tricked into banishing him to the forest. His devoted wife Sita insists on accompanying him in exile, but the evil ten-headed lord Ravana has fallen deeply in love with the beautiful princess and steals her away. Aided by Hanuman, mighty captain of the monkeys, Rama sets out across the world to find her and destroy Ravana in a deadly battle. Rama the Steadfast was composed in the oral tradition in about the fifth century BC and has been retold over the generations ever since. With its fantastical characters ranging from monsters to apes, a very human hero and its profound moral purpose, it is one of the greatest of all Indian tales.
496 pages, Paperback
Published February 27, 2007
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About the author
Vālmīki
475 books136 followersValmiki is celebrated as the poet harbinger in Sanskrit literature. He is the author of the epic Ramayana, based on the attribution in the text of the epic itself.He is revered as the Adi Kavi, which means First Poet, for he discovered the first śloka i.e. first verse, which set the base and defined the form to Sanskrit poetry. The Yoga Vasistha is attributed to him. A religious movement called Valmikism is based on Valmiki's teachings as presented in the Ramayana and the Yoga Vasistha.
At least by the 1st century AD, Valmiki's reputation as the father of Sanskrit classical poetry seems to have been legendary. Ashvagosha writes in the Buddhacarita,
"The voice of Valmiki uttered poetry which the great seer Chyavana could not compose."
This particular verse has been speculated to indicate a familial relationship between Valmiki and Chyavana, as implied by the previous and subsequent verses.
At least by the 1st century AD, Valmiki's reputation as the father of Sanskrit classical poetry seems to have been legendary. Ashvagosha writes in the Buddhacarita,
"The voice of Valmiki uttered poetry which the great seer Chyavana could not compose."
This particular verse has been speculated to indicate a familial relationship between Valmiki and Chyavana, as implied by the previous and subsequent verses.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
April 10, 2020
1.5 stars, the ending is where it started to pick up
June 15, 2023
Very interesting, with plenty of references and good explanations of how this version is different (it aims to be only the earliest complete story, no later add-ons). I enjoyed the glimpse into what 500BCE warrior society India was like, and the comparison with the same era Greece, as seen in the Iliad. I find the Iliad a more compelling story, with the level of repetition more bearable, but there are a lot of similarities.
October 26, 2012
Good versus evil is simplistic, I'll give you that. But the sheer size, scope and beauty of the work are enough to make you forget that.
June 23, 2024
The Rāmayana is not simply the story of Rāma. It envisions a social order imbued with equality, justice and democracy. This epic exhorts the kings and the people who hold the government, to rule with love and justice. The author imparts this principle through the example of king Dashratha for starters.
Dashratha, ‘Who ruled his people with a father's loving grace / Truth and justice swayed each action and each baser motive quelled.’
The poet says that the principle of social justice should govern the actions of the state as it did in Dashratha's time. Everybody was happy during Dashratha's rule. Poverty, want, hunger were not known -Fathers with their happy household owned their cattle, corn, and gold, Galling penury and famine in Ayodhya had no hold."
Since there was prosperity in every family, nobody thought of resorting to cheating, deceiving, or robbing "Cheat, braggart and deceiver lived not in the ancient town." Since poverty was unknown, there was 'None who begged the wasted refuse, none who lived by fraud and stealth"
This was the result of impartial distribution of wealth. Nobody was too rich, nor was anybody too poor. Social ranks were free from envy, jealousy and hatred. None was exploited.
‘Poorer fed not on the richer, hireling friend upon the great, / None with low and lying accents did upon the proud wait. t was the golden period of equality, liberty and fraternity.’
The original conception of the Rāma story as it emerges in this volume reflects the interests and concerns of the warrior aristocracy (the ksatriya class): Rāma is a martial champion whose actions are accepted without question as necessary and, for that reason, as justified.
Later times and different milieux had different values, and new characteristics were attributed to Rāma through the centuries during which the text was expanded and reworked. First he becomes a moral hero, then a regal but still human figure; later he was viewed as the earthly manifestation (avatāra) of the god Vishnu, finally as God in his own right, with the developed text acquiring the status of holy scripture.
The Rāma story has been in a constant state of re-creation, and in the development of many of these later adaptations (though by no means all), the role played by the faith of believers has been crucial.
To conclude, the work is founded on the values of the warrior aristocracy (ksatriyas): devotion to duty, integrity, pride and valour – both physical and spiritual – with brāhmanic values acknowledged but not inappropriately obtrusive. No incongruity is seen in the performance of a sacrifice by the ksatriya Rāma to consecrate the hut, Lakshmana has built for them to live in on Citrakūta. If the stringency of the developed class structure or of four stages of life (from student to renunciant) existed at all by this time, the tellers of the Rāmāyana took no interest in them.
Women too are accorded rather greater freedom than might be expected, superficially at least, although a wife’s duty to be subordinate to her husband is already emphasized. Widows are not yet regarded as inauspicious, but courtesans can convey auspiciousness by their presence on special occasions.
It is clear that various practical forms of learning were well developed, but formal education for young warriors seems to consist only of the necessary instruction in weaponry, alongside knowledge of the Vedas; for a princess a good upbringing means learning the duties of a wife.
A tale for all times.
Dashratha, ‘Who ruled his people with a father's loving grace / Truth and justice swayed each action and each baser motive quelled.’
The poet says that the principle of social justice should govern the actions of the state as it did in Dashratha's time. Everybody was happy during Dashratha's rule. Poverty, want, hunger were not known -Fathers with their happy household owned their cattle, corn, and gold, Galling penury and famine in Ayodhya had no hold."
Since there was prosperity in every family, nobody thought of resorting to cheating, deceiving, or robbing "Cheat, braggart and deceiver lived not in the ancient town." Since poverty was unknown, there was 'None who begged the wasted refuse, none who lived by fraud and stealth"
This was the result of impartial distribution of wealth. Nobody was too rich, nor was anybody too poor. Social ranks were free from envy, jealousy and hatred. None was exploited.
‘Poorer fed not on the richer, hireling friend upon the great, / None with low and lying accents did upon the proud wait. t was the golden period of equality, liberty and fraternity.’
The original conception of the Rāma story as it emerges in this volume reflects the interests and concerns of the warrior aristocracy (the ksatriya class): Rāma is a martial champion whose actions are accepted without question as necessary and, for that reason, as justified.
Later times and different milieux had different values, and new characteristics were attributed to Rāma through the centuries during which the text was expanded and reworked. First he becomes a moral hero, then a regal but still human figure; later he was viewed as the earthly manifestation (avatāra) of the god Vishnu, finally as God in his own right, with the developed text acquiring the status of holy scripture.
The Rāma story has been in a constant state of re-creation, and in the development of many of these later adaptations (though by no means all), the role played by the faith of believers has been crucial.
To conclude, the work is founded on the values of the warrior aristocracy (ksatriyas): devotion to duty, integrity, pride and valour – both physical and spiritual – with brāhmanic values acknowledged but not inappropriately obtrusive. No incongruity is seen in the performance of a sacrifice by the ksatriya Rāma to consecrate the hut, Lakshmana has built for them to live in on Citrakūta. If the stringency of the developed class structure or of four stages of life (from student to renunciant) existed at all by this time, the tellers of the Rāmāyana took no interest in them.
Women too are accorded rather greater freedom than might be expected, superficially at least, although a wife’s duty to be subordinate to her husband is already emphasized. Widows are not yet regarded as inauspicious, but courtesans can convey auspiciousness by their presence on special occasions.
It is clear that various practical forms of learning were well developed, but formal education for young warriors seems to consist only of the necessary instruction in weaponry, alongside knowledge of the Vedas; for a princess a good upbringing means learning the duties of a wife.
A tale for all times.
August 16, 2022
9/10
Worthy of the Gods
Worthy of the Gods
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews