The Rāmāyana of Valmīki

Preview

Failed to add items

Sorry, we are unable to add the item because your shopping basket is already at capacity.

Add to cart failed.

Please try again later

Add to wishlist failed.

Please try again later

Remove from wishlist failed.

Please try again later

Follow podcast failed

Unfollow podcast failed

Listen with Audible free trial

Free with 30-day trial

New to Audible Prime Member exclusive:
2 credits with free trial

1 credit a month to use on any title to download and keep

Listen to anything from the Plus Catalogue—thousands of Audible Originals, podcasts and audiobooks

Download titles to your library and listen offline

₹199.00 per month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.

The Rāmāyana of Valmīki

Written by: Ralph T. H. Griffith, ValmĪki

Narrated by: Sagar Arya

Free with 30-day trial

₹199.00 per month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for ₹1,047.19

The ancient Indian Sanskrit epic the Ramayana was composed some time between the first and fifth centuries BCE. As is the case with most ancient literature firmly rooted in the oral tradition, precise dating is problematic. Traditionally attributed to the sage Valmiki, and composed in rhyming couplets, it is one of the two great Indian epics (the other being the Mahabharata); consequently it is known and revered not just throughout the Indian subcontinent but also in South-East Asian countries as well, including Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia - indeed wherever Hindu culture became established.

It relates the tale of a Prince of Ayodhya, Rama, and recounts the various episodes of his exile and subsequent return. The narrative follows Rama's quest and rescue mission, bringing home his beloved Sita from the clutches of the demon king of Lanka, Ravana, aided by an army of monkeys. While the basic story involves palace politics and battles with demon tribes, it is also infused with ethics, philosophy, logic and notes on duty.

In the Mahabharata, characters are presented with all their human follies and failings; the Ramayana by contrast leans towards an ideal state of things. For instance, Rama is the ideal son and king, Sita the ideal wife, Hanuman the ideal devotee, Lakshman and Bharat the ideal brothers, and even Ravana, the demon villain, is not entirely despicable. This translation, by Ralph T. H. Griffith, first published in 1870, was the first complete English version and has retained its initial reputation as an outstanding achievement - as much for its literary as its scholastic qualities.

There are six Books or Khandas (a seventh which is sometimes included is generally regarded as a much later addition) containing some 24,000 verses which, as with the original, are presented in rhyming couplets. This makes the Ramayana of a similar length to the Iliad and Odyssey combined, and there are a handful of occasions when, to avoid repetition, Griffith inserts a prose précis.

Curiously he declined to translate The Glory of Uma followed by The Birth of Kartikeya in Book 1 on the grounds that it might offend the sensibility of his contemporaries! As one commentator remarked, Griffith was sometimes reluctant to ‘show much leg.’ In this case, the ‘offending’ verses have been newly translated for this Ukemi recording by Anwesha Arya, and delightful they are too!

The Ramayana and its stories have been part of the cultural life and language of the reader, Sagar Arya, since childhood; thus this recording was especially important to him, and he infuses it with a special understanding and authority.(P)2019 Ukemi Productions Ltd

Ralph T. H. GriffithValmĪkiSagar AryaUkemi Audiobooks from W. F. Howes Ltd

Buddhism

English, Irish, Scottish & Welsh

European

Hinduism

Spirituality

World Literature

Buddhism English, Irish, Scottish & Welsh European Hinduism Spirituality World Literature

Most relevant

omits many cantos in various adhyays. all the cantos must be translated and included. u can't just skip as it's not important by your POV.