- Hindi:
- “Sacred Lake of the Acts of Rama”
Ramcharitmanas
Ramcharitmanas, version, written in the Awadhi dialect of Hindi, of the Sanskrit epic poem the Ramayana, one of the masterpieces of medieval Hindu literature and a work with significant influence on modern Hinduism. Written in the 16th century by the poet Tulsidas, a Vaishnavite poet of the bhakti movement in northern India, the Ramcharitmanas is a major work of devotional literature.
The poem was written in Awadhi rather than in classical Sanskrit, making it accessible to a wider audience beyond those educated in Sanskrit. Composed during Mughal emperor Akbar’s reign, it retells the story of Rama, prince of Ayodhya, revered in Hindu tradition as an avatar (divine incarnation) of the deity Vishnu. Although based on the Sanskrit Ramayana attributed to Valmiki, Tulsidas’s work is a theological reenvisioning in which Rama appears throughout as the supreme god rather than as a heroic human figure. The poem is divided into seven sections (kandas): Baal, Ayodhya, Aranya, Kishkindha, Sundar, Lanka, and Uttara. It begins with divine invocations for Rama’s birth, recounts his childhood and marriage to Sita, and then moves through Rama’s coronation and exile, his forest life, Sita’s abduction by Ravana (the 10-headed demon king of Lanka), and Rama’s alliance with Sugriva (monkey king of Kishkindha) and Hanuman (monkey commander and Rama’s chief ally).
The narrative culminates in Hanuman’s journey to Lanka, the great war and Ravana’s defeat, and concludes with Rama’s return to Ayodhya. Characters such as Sita and Rama’s brothers Lakshman and Bharat are presented as models of devotion, courage, and loyalty. The work blends narrative with devotional hymnic passages (bhajans) that urge veneration of Rama.
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