The Wonderful Mysteries of Ramayana

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The Ramayana was composed first by the sage Valmiki who happens to be foremost of all the poets in the country, which relates to the story of the Rama, the son of Dasaratha, the Iksvaku king of the Ayodhya. It has seven Kandas starting from Bala-kunda or Adi-kanda and concluding with Uttara-kanda, completing the story from the beginning to the end. Some of the Western scholars like Bulcke and others, besides also a few from the country claim that the first (Bala-kunda or Adi-kanda) and the last i.e., Uttara-kanda, are the subsequent additions to the Ramayana of Valmiki. They have also contested Rama o be the incarnation of Visnu. These scholars further believe that the incarnation aspect of Rama is highlighted in these two Kandas, besides some of their interpretations which were added subsequently to the various episodes in the epic of Valmiki. In this connection it may be pointed out that the following points have to be kept in view while dealing with the questions of these interpolations-

(i) The entire story of the Ramayana is quite a well-knit story and in case, even one episode is removed from the poetry, the void felt would be too obvious.

(ii) The total number of verses have been counted as twenty -four thousand and in case the theory of interpolation is accepted, the very structure of the epic would be in jeopardy.

(iii) Though the scholars have come forward with the theory of interpolation were incorporated, nor the persons or the poets who did so, and much less, of the reasons for such interpolations.

(iv) In case the Bala -kanda is removed from the Ramayana, the entire epic would become headless, leaving no trace of the antiquity of the solar dynasty, and several other episodes, like the yajna of Dasaratha; the birth of the sons of Dasaratha; the marriage of Sita and her other sisters with the Ayodhya princes. This would leave the epic incomplete.

(v) The Uttara-kanda, to mind, is as important as the other Kandas, because the main difficulty in treating it to be a later addition, is that the very authorship of the epic would be in jeopardy, because the main difficulty in treating it to be a later additions, is that the very authorship of the epic would be in jeopardy, because it is in this Kanda alone, that the authorship of the epic is testified. In case it is treated to be a later addition, the authorship of the epic cannot be established with any degree of authenticity which can hardly be appreciated. It would be quite different to study the spirit or environments in which the work was created. Needless to say that the deep sense of devotion of Valmiki had been responsible for the creation of this work which had been a prestigious one and a world renowned epic, of which the country would always be proud of.

In the foregoing account, it has been possible to bring home the point that the portions of the epic relating to the incarnation aspect of Visnu on the form of Rama, can hardly be treated as interpolations, unless undeniable and quite convincing proof is available in that regard.

From the Jacket

The Ramayana was composed first by the sage Valmiki who happens to be the foremost of all the poets in the country, which relates to the story of the Rama, the son of Dasaratha, the Iksvaku king of Ayodhya. It has seven Kandas starting from Bala-kanda and concluding with Uttara- kanda, completing the story from the beginning to the end.

There are various versions of Ramayanapopular throughout India. Not only this, the popularity of the story of Rama also crossed the Indian frontier and reached the countries of the east like Burma, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Japan, China and Tibet.

This book has been compiled from over twenty different Ramayanas and other ancient texts.