RELIGIONS OF SOUTHEAST ASIA
Assignment on R. K. Narayan’s The Ramayan
Classical Hinduism was very much centered on three things: kingship, sacrifice, and the
priesthood, those learned ritual experts who did the sacrificing. Gods, demons, and cycles of
birth, death, rebirth and re-death through out the ages were also part of the belief system. Gods,
demons , humans, and animals were all believed to be able to turn into one another. Some had
special powers to do this in an instant. For others these changes might take place
unintentionally over the course of many rebirths. But the most ideal figure was a just and wise
king with a good wife as queen and great sages and holy men as advisors. The major narrative
of classic Hinduism was that of kingship perfected, almost divine, and it assumed another
equally important narrative, namely, that of duty performed.
If the King truly did his duty, dharma, to realm and subjects all would be happy, almost heaven
on earth. The only beings opposed to this ideal were the demons. Their grudges against dutifill
(i.e. moral) humans and the gods remained unending. It was, in a sense, their duty to be the
cosmic spoilers in the system. In all, the dramas of life and of being took place on a cosmic as
well as a human scale. The main players on the cosmic scale were the gods and goddesses,
Dewa and Dewati, and the demons, the rakshasas On the human scale action, karma, always
brought consequences for good or evil but these could not be foreseen and could take multiple
life-times to appear. But following duty, dharma, should, over time, bring good ‘kannic results.
R.K. Narayan’s retelling of The Ramayana is a masterful rendering of the real master work of
classical Hinduism. It is the story of Rama. It is a story told with many stories within the main
story. Each of these teach the religious world view and the ethic (or ideals for action) of
Hinduism. Rama is the god Wishnu/Vishnu come to earth to stave off cosmic destruction
planned by demons, especially their leader, the ‘ten headed Ravana’. At the same time Vishnu
fulfills King Dasaratha’s wish for an heir to his throne to rule over his beloved Kingdom of
Kosala. In human form Rama seems near perfect, yet he faces many obstacles. These make for
great drama. But the theme of kingship perfected as the highest desire of both humans and
gods prevails throughout. It is the major plot. Ideally, it is also the cosmic plot of all of life
and of the universe in its totality. Only the demons are against the perfection of human and
divine kingship. Their mischievous interference is where the cosmic and the human levels
intersect. Human weakness and moral failings are also at this same intersection, So classical
Hinduism’s emphasis on kingship perfected is not just about seeing that rulers are powerful,
good, decent, and dutiful, but that all of human conduct aspires to a wise and redeeming level of
ethical conduct.
The virtues of ideal, once-upon-a-time-like, perfected Hindu Kingship are not just about the
magic and wisdom of god-like kings. They are also about the moral senses and the temptations
of all human beings from the highest to the lowest. For example, a handicapped servant’s bitter
resentment over a childhood insult from Rama causes him his greatest difficulty. She over-
reacts, but as he later admits, he had been in the wrong.
So despite an emphasis on kingship and social caste position in classical Hinduism, there is
much universal ethical teaching as well. NOTE: In Southeast Asia the idea of Hindu kingship
was magnified into the devaraja, god-king cult, while the idea of caste, with the exceptions of
Brahmins as priests and Kshatryas as rulers and warriors, was largely rejected.
Rama’s story best captures the values of the earliest urban based religions discussed by Karen
Armstrong in chapter iv of her A Short History of Myth. These religions were about order,
fertility, power, and about the general well being for people living under a-ruler blessed by and,
in theory, guided by the gods. The anthropologist A. M. Hocart refered to these archaic
kingdoms as cults of life, becauSe the well being of ruler, realm and subjects was so intrinsically
linked.
Overtly ‘ethicalizing’ religions concerned with universal moral standards and with the need for
an ultimate principles of j ustice or salvation had not yet emerged. Classical Hinduism was on
the brink of this transition into what Armstrong and others call the Axial Age, from 800 to 200
BCE. The Ramayana still holds to divine empowerment of kings as what is best for all, but its
concern with justice and moral awareness in anyone’s actions shows that a universal standard of
ethical thinking has already entered the picture.
This story of gods, demons, exile, abduction, and rescue has a very philosophical side when it
comes to deciding right and wrong, You must learn what causes Rama to go into exile. Who
goes with him? You must learn why Sita, Rama’s wife, is abducted. You must find out how she
is finally rescued? What ordeal does she go through? Learn who is Ravana and what is his
kingdom? Who is Hanuman and why is he so helpful to Rama?
This great epic is a powerful myth of kingship and humanity perfected – made just and holy.
But Rama is not a teacher of enlightenment, like the Buddha; nor is he a savior of mankind, like
Jesus; nor is he a prophet from a higher power, as is Mohamed. He is not the founder of a world
religion. He is a hero, an example for all times of the righteous ruler and the avatar or direct
expression in human form of the God Vishnu, the preserver of things. He succeeds in defending
the world, gods, and people from the demons but he does not innovate a new religion. His
devotees through the ages honor and. worship him as they might any other of their favorites in
the Hindu pantheon. But they do this knowing that his story teaches them wisdom and moral
understanding and is not merely a miraculous tale of romance and adventure.
A warning! Many characters in the Ramayana will strike you as being like the super heroes
(and villains) of modern pop culture. They have amazing powers and secret vulnerabilities. But
the difference is that the super heroes and villains of modern pop culture are viewed as fictional
characters, those in the Ramayana are viewed as real or at least as having been real at the time
of the story, The Ramayana is not fiction. It is at varying levels taken to be true Blood has
been shed over its validity. Rama’s birth place in the actual city of Ayodhya has been fought
over in recent years
In reading the Ramayana you must get acquainted with its cast of characters. The characters are
listed on pages xv and xvi. You will be assigned a two page written assignment on two or
possibly three characters from the story. One character should be male and the other female.
Also say who was you favorite character and what about them did you most like? Since the
male and female characters will be pre-assigned to people, this third character will be of your
own choice. If your favorite was already in, then pick a second favorite. Briefly tell why you
like this character the most. In one case,Gautam and Indra, two male characters are assigned
with one female, Kausala.. In another case, two female characters Mandodaree and Tara are
assigned with one male character, Rama himself.
Key points to cover are as follows: Write on the male and the female characters you have been
assigned by the first letter of your last or first name. Tell who are your character’s fiiends and
foes? What role does each play in the main story? Or do they belong to a story within the
story? Are they god, goddess, demon animal, or human? Choose your pair or trio of characters
to write about according to the first letter of your first or last name. Find your main two or
three characters from the following guide.
First letter of Male Female
your name Character Character
A-C Dasaratha Thataka
D-F Gautama and Indra Kausala
G-I Lakshmana Kaikeyi’
J – L Bharatha Kooni
M-O Viswamithra Ahalya
P-R Hanuman Thataka
S Rama Mandodaree and Tara
T-U Vali Sita
V-W Sugreeva Soorpanaka
X-Z J atayu Kooni or Soorpanaka
In your report tell about what kind of being each character is: god, human,demon, animal, lesser
god, or lesser demon. What do they do in the main story? Are they also part of a story within
the main story? Tell that story? Who are your characters’ closest allies and main opponents?
Do they help or hinder Rama and Sita? What motivates your characters? What is their most
pivotal role in the whole story? If you have a favorite character other than your assigned two
characters, tell who that is and what you like about them. Altogether write 1 V2
to 2 1/2 pages. For Sanskrit terms see the glossary on page 172.
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