Many Ramayanas, Many Lessons

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What does the Ramayana mean to you? Is it a Dharma Shastra-a guide to life’s ideals? A holy book for spiritual practise? Or a source of timeless wisdom and enjoyment? Or is it all of these at once?

With countless retellings across Asia, spanning centuries, cultures and languages, the Ramayana has captured the imagination of generations. From oral traditions to ancient manuscripts and modern texts, these renderings offer countless perspectives on its characters, their situations and the lessons they impart. Did you know that in many folktales derived from the epic, Ravana’s sister Surpanakha is portrayed as a victim of a spurned love rather than an aggressor? Or that there is no mention of the famous Lakshmana Rekha, the boundary drawn around Sita, in the Valmiki Ramayana, one of the oldest versions of the epic? Or that in the Thai and Tibetan versions, Sita is identified as Ravana’s daughter, while in Central Asia’s Khotani Ramayana she marries both Rama and Lakshmana?

In Many Ramayanas, Many Lessons, myth-master Anand Neelakantan weaves together riveting stories and insightful commentary to explore what Valmiki may have intended in his original narrative and how the epic has mutated and evolved over thousands of years, sometimes in unimaginable ways. He invites us to dive into its depths, reflect on its nuances and discover the versions that resonate most with us. After all, the Ramayana isn’t just one story, reflecting a single truth-it is an enduring symbol of plurality and essential wisdom, and the merging of many truths.