The story of Rama appeals to everyone. In one form or the other, the Ramayana is read or listened to by thousands of people every day. Sage Valmiki, the Yoga Vasishta informs us, was the first to narrate this story. Thanks to oral tradition, many versions were born. The Ramayana purports to enlighten us about the abstract and abstruse principles of Advaita philosophy, moral and ethical values, duties, and ideals in individual, social and political life. The purpose of narrating Rama’s story, Sage Vasishta says, is to make one happy and teach him to live without attachment and scepticism. It shows the way to live like a liberated being and develop serenity of mind.
It is indifferent to the question of whether Rama actually existed or not. According to Vivekananda, “It is not even necessary that one like Rama should have ever lived. The sublimity of the law propounded by the Ramayana. . . does not depend upon the truth of any personality like Rama, and one can even hold that such a person age never lived. ”Valmiki’s Ramayana is called the Aadi Ramayana as it is the original version —of which there are three original texts. One-third of each of these texts differs in content from the other. The Bombay text is popular in northern and western India; the Bengal text in the eastern parts of India and the Kashmir text in north-western India.
In the first and the last canto, Rama is depicted merely as a prince practising high moral and ethical values who is well-versed with warfare. So, was Rama an incarnation? No one knows. The story of Rama is narrated in all Indian languages and regions. In entire South East Asia, the Ramayana has evolved in different languages, idioms and cultures. In the process, the story of Rama acquired the hues of these different regions, taking on a regional flavour. In Thailand, it is called Ramakien and Rama is depicted as a Thai prince who was a Buddhist in his previous birth. Ravana is called Tosaknath and is not totally wicked.
The Thai kings adopted political and religious ideals of the Indians to trace their ancestry to Hindu gods and thus legitimise their divine origin. Though the basic storyline remains the same, due to poetic licence and literary form, several minor deviations are found in different versions. Tulsidasa’s Ramcharitmanas refrains from narrating the beauty of Sita, but it describes some intimate moments in the life of Rama and Sita. Rama tells Hanuman — before the latter embarks upon the reconnaissance mission to search for Sita — that while massaging his legs once, Sita had thrown away her stone-studded ring for it may, like Ahilya, get transformed into a beautiful woman. Sita had expressed her fear that Rama might get distracted. However, there are some versions of the Ramayanain which there are radical deviations from the mainline story.
In the Dasharatha Jataka of the Buddhists, Sita is not depicted as the wife of Rama. Instead, Sita is his sister. In the Adbhuta Ramayana, Sita is the lost child of Ravana and Mandodari. King Janaka, while ploughing the field, accidentally finds her. According to this version of the Ramayana, it was Sita who killed Ravana. Ananda Ramayana and Mula Ramayana extol the greatness of Hanuman. Likewise, Kamban’s Tamil Ramayana, Dwidish Ramayana in Telugu, Ramacharitam in Malayalam, Torway Ramayana in Kannada, Madhavakali Ramayana in Assamese, Krittiwasa Ramayana in Bangla, Balramadasa Ramayana in Oriya, Bhavartha Ramayana in Marathi — all have their own distinguishing features. Rama — whether as the Maryada Purusha, the ideal human being or as Vishnu’s incarnation — is a great role model whose popularity transcends borders and cultures.
By- Ashok Vohra
