Many Ramayanas Many Lessons

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?