What do you think?
Rate this book
The Rāmāyaṇa of Vālmīki: An Epic of Ancient India, Volume III: Aranyakāṇḍa
This is the third volume of a planned seven-volume translation of India's most beloved and influential epic tale--the Ramayana of Valmiki. This third volume carries forward the narrative by following the exiled hero Rama, his wife, and his brother on their wanderings. The book contains the narrative center of the epic, the abduction of Sita by the demon king Ravana. It provides a profound meditation on the paradox of the hero as both human and divine.
The present translation seeks to provide a readable and trustworthy English version of the poem. It is accompanied by a full commentary elucidating the philological, aesthetic, and cultural problems of the text. Extensive use is made in the annotations of the numerous commentaries on the Ramayana. The substantial introduction to this volume aims to supply a historical context for an appreciation of the poem and a critical reading exploring the ideological components of the work.
The volumes of this work will present the entire Ramayana, translated for the first time on the basis of the critical edition (Oriental Institute, Baroda).
The present translation seeks to provide a readable and trustworthy English version of the poem. It is accompanied by a full commentary elucidating the philological, aesthetic, and cultural problems of the text. Extensive use is made in the annotations of the numerous commentaries on the Ramayana. The substantial introduction to this volume aims to supply a historical context for an appreciation of the poem and a critical reading exploring the ideological components of the work.
The volumes of this work will present the entire Ramayana, translated for the first time on the basis of the critical edition (Oriental Institute, Baroda).
416 pages, Paperback
Published September 6, 2016
13 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
January 14, 2019
I started with this volume because of the idea of leaving civilization and entering the wild forest seemed exciting. The English translation seems so smooth and natural. I love the florid descriptions about the forests and all the various ascetics and rākṣasas who inhabit them. The story itself gives a glimpse at the cultural mindset from which this epic sprung.
This blue edition contains six essays spanning 82 pages and 111 pages of notes to the main text. The essays are best read after reading the main text. My comments on the six essays:
1. "The Problem of the Araṇyakāṇḍa" begins with the sentence "Contemporary readers of the Rāmāyaṇa ... are likely to have the impression that they have suddenly fallen down the rabbit hole into the world of Wonderland". My response is "how is that a problem?" Was there a problem when Dorothy was whisked away from the mess of "civilized" society in the black-and-white plains of Kansas and dropped into the magical land of Oz in full Technicolor? No.
2. "Summary of the Araṇyakāṇḍa" is a concise summary of the volume.
3. "The Rāmāyaṇa: Myth and Romance?" begs the question: do we need to pigeonhole everything in order to be happy?
4,5. "The Divine King of the Rāmāyaṇa" and "Rāma's Madness". Ok, now we are getting into meat. These two essays help the reader understand the nature of Rāma because it seems he is sometimes human, sometimes godly, and sometimes beyond the gods.
6. "Rākṣasas and Others". It could easily have been titled "Rākṣasas and Otherness". A very informative essay on the nature of the rakṣasas.
Two minor gripes: (1) I wish the notes were on the same page as the main text because it is a bit inconvenient to flip back and forth and (2) many of the notes pertain to Sanskrit passages but because this edition does not have the parallel Sanskrit, it is difficult to get into it as it were; in fact, I'm going to get the Clay edition of vol 4 just to see Sanskrit transliteration, but the Clay editions don't have the essays nor notes. 4.5 stars.
This blue edition contains six essays spanning 82 pages and 111 pages of notes to the main text. The essays are best read after reading the main text. My comments on the six essays:
1. "The Problem of the Araṇyakāṇḍa" begins with the sentence "Contemporary readers of the Rāmāyaṇa ... are likely to have the impression that they have suddenly fallen down the rabbit hole into the world of Wonderland". My response is "how is that a problem?" Was there a problem when Dorothy was whisked away from the mess of "civilized" society in the black-and-white plains of Kansas and dropped into the magical land of Oz in full Technicolor? No.
2. "Summary of the Araṇyakāṇḍa" is a concise summary of the volume.
3. "The Rāmāyaṇa: Myth and Romance?" begs the question: do we need to pigeonhole everything in order to be happy?
4,5. "The Divine King of the Rāmāyaṇa" and "Rāma's Madness". Ok, now we are getting into meat. These two essays help the reader understand the nature of Rāma because it seems he is sometimes human, sometimes godly, and sometimes beyond the gods.
6. "Rākṣasas and Others". It could easily have been titled "Rākṣasas and Otherness". A very informative essay on the nature of the rakṣasas.
Two minor gripes: (1) I wish the notes were on the same page as the main text because it is a bit inconvenient to flip back and forth and (2) many of the notes pertain to Sanskrit passages but because this edition does not have the parallel Sanskrit, it is difficult to get into it as it were; in fact, I'm going to get the Clay edition of vol 4 just to see Sanskrit transliteration, but the Clay editions don't have the essays nor notes. 4.5 stars.
Displaying 1 of 1 review