Rama

Gold carving depiction of the legendary Ayodhya at the Ajmer Jain temple

Rama is portrayed in Hindu arts and texts as a compassionate person who cares for all living beings.

The Rama story is carved into stone as an 8th-century relief artwork in the largest Shiva temple of the Ellora Caves, suggesting its importance to the Indian society by then.

1870 painting on mica entitled, Incarnation of Vishnu

Rama (left third from top) depicted in the Dashavatara (ten incornations) of Vishnu. Painting from Jaipur, now at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Rama (Yama) and Sita (Thida) in Yama Zatdaw, the Burmese version of the Ramayana

A 5th century terracotta sculpture depicting Rama

In Northern, Central and Western states of India, the Ramlila play is enacted during Navratri by rural artists (above).

Rama's story is a major part of the artistic reliefs found at Angkor Wat, Cambodia. Large sequences of Ramayana reliefs are also found in Java, Indonesia.

The UNESCO World Heritage Site of Hampi monuments in Karnataka, built by the Vijayanagara Empire, includes a major Rama temple. Its numerous wall reliefs tell the life story of Rama.

Rama Temple at Ramtek (10th century, restored). A medieval inscription here calls Rama as Advaitavadaprabhu or "Lord of the Advaita doctrine".

Rama, along with his younger brother Lakshmana and wife Sita, exiled to the forest.

Ravana's sister Suparnakha attempts to seduce Rama and cheat on Sita. He refuses and spurns her (above).

Ravana kidnapping Sita while Jatayu on the left tried to help her. 9th-century Prambanan bas-relief, Java, Indonesia.

Major deity in Hinduism.

- Rama

500 related topics

Ramayana

Sanskrit epic from ancient India.

Rama with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana during exile in the forest, manuscript, ca. 1780

An artist's impression of sage Valmiki composing the Ramayana

Rama (left third from top) depicted in the Dashavatara, the ten avatars of Vishnu. Painting from Jaipur, now at the Victoria and Albert Museum

The marriage of the four sons of Dasharatha with the four daughters of Siradhvaja Janaka and Kushadhvaja. Rama and Sita, Lakshmana and Urmila, Bharata and Mandavi and Shatrughna with Shrutakirti.

A gold carving depiction of the legendary Ayodhya at the Ajmer Jain temple.

Ravana fights Jatayu as he carries off the kidnapped Sita. Painting by Raja Ravi Varma

A stone bas-relief at Banteay Srei in Cambodia depicts the combat between Vali and Sugriva (middle). To the right, Rama fires his bow. To the left, Vali lies dying.

Ravana is meeting Sita at Ashokavana. Hanuman is seen on the tree.

The Battle at Lanka, Ramayana by Sahibdin. It depicts the monkey army of the protagonist Rama (top left, blue figure) fighting Ravana—the demon-king of the Lanka—to save Rama's kidnapped wife, Sita. The painting depicts multiple events in the battle against the three-headed demon general Trishira, in the bottom left. Trishira is beheaded by Hanuman, the monkey-companion of Rama.

The epic story of Ramyana was adopted by several cultures across Asia. Shown here is a Thai historic artwork depicting the battle which took place between Rama and Ravana.

A relief with part of the Ramayana epic, shows Rama killed the golden deer that turn out to be the demon Maricha in disguise. Prambanan Trimurti temple near Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia.

Cambodian classical dancers as Sita and Ravana, the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh (c. 1920s)

Lakshmana, Rama and Sita during their exile in Dandaka Forest depicted in Javanese dance

Rama (Yama) and Sita (Me Thida) in Yama Zatdaw, the Burmese version of Ramyana

The Thai retelling of the tale—Ramakien—is popularly expressed in traditional regional dance theatre

A Ramlila actor wears the traditional attire of Ravanan.

Hanuman discovers Sita in her captivity in Lanka, as depicted in Balinese kecak dance.

The painting by the Indonesian (Balinese) artist, Ida Bagus Made Togog depicts the episode from the Ramayana about the Monkey Kings of Sugriva and Vali; The Killing of Vali. Rama depicted as a crowned figure with a bow and arrow.

The epic, traditionally ascribed to the Maharishi Valmiki, narrates the life of Rama, a legendary prince of Ayodhya city in the kingdom of Kosala.

Vaishnavism

One of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism.

Vāsudeva on a coin of Agathocles of Bactria, circa 190–180 BCE. This is "the earliest unambiguous image" of the deity.

The inscription of the Heliodorus pillar that was made by Indo-Greek envoy Heliodorus in 110 BCE, in what is modern Vidisha (Madhya Pradesh). The inscription states Heliodorus is a Bhagavata devoted to the "God of gods" Vāsudeva.

Vishnu in three incarnations (Vaikuntha Chaturmurti): Vishnu himself or Krishna in human form, Varaha as a boar, Narasimha as a lion. Gupta art, Mathura, mid-5th century CE. Boston Museum.

Relationship between different forms of Krishna as Paripurna avatara of Vishnu and as Svayam Bhagavan in Chaitanya school of Vaishnavism.

The Krishna stories have inspired numerous dramatic and dance arts in Indian culture.

Jiva Gosvami's Bhajan Kutir at Radha-kunda. Jiva Goswamis Sandarbhas summarize Vedic sources of Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition's accretion of the concept Krishna to be the supreme Lord.

Its followers are called Vaishnavites or Vaishnavas, and it includes sub-sects like Krishnaism and Ramaism, which consider Krishna and Rama as the supreme beings respectively.

Kausalya

The senior queen consort of Kosala in the Hindu epic Ramayana.

Rama meets his mother Kousalya while she performs pooja

She was the mother of Lord Rama, the titular hero of the epic, and the senior wife of Dasharatha, who ruled Kosala from its capital Ayodhya.

Shatrughna

Birth of the four sons of King Dasharatha

Bharata and Shatrughna leave for Kaikeya, taking leave from Dasharatha, Rama and Lakshmana

Shatrughna is a prince of Ayodhya, and a brother of Lord Rama in the Hindu epic Ramayana.

Bharata (Ramayana)

Character in the ancient Indian epic Ramayana.

Bharata places Rama's Paduka (Footwear) on the throne

He is a younger half-brother of Rama and rules Ayodhya while Rama is banished from the country and fights to recover his wife Sita, kidnapped by Ravana.

Vishnu

One of the principal deities of Hinduism.

The Trimurti at Ellora, with Vishnu in the middle.

Vishnu and his avatars (Vaikuntha Chaturmurti): Vishnu himself or Krishna in human form, Narasimha as a lion, Varaha as a boar. Art of Mathura, mid-5th century CE. Boston Museum.

Hindu god Vishnu (centre) surrounded by his avatars namely (counter-clockwise, from left-top) Matsya; Kurma; Varaha; Narasimha; Vamana; Parashurama; Rama; Krishna; Buddha and Kalki, Raja Ravi Varma oleograph

Vishnu with Lakshmi (Laxminarayan) on Garuda.

Hindu Gods praying to the supreme lord Vishnu.

Uthpalawarna Vishnu Devalaya in Devinuwara, Matara, Sri Lanka.

The Angkor Wat Temple was built as a dedication to Vishnu.

The front-view of Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala

11th-century Vishnu sculpture the goddesses Lakshmi and Sarasvati. The edges show reliefs of Vishnu avatars Varaha, Narasimha, Balarama, Rama, and others. Also shown is Brahma. (Brooklyn Museum)<ref>Stele with Vishnu, His Consorts, His Avatars, and Other Dieties, Brooklyn Museum, Item 1991.244, Gift of David Nalin</ref>

A statue in Bangkok depicting Vishnu on his vahana Garuda, the eagle. One of the oldest discovered Hindu-style statues of Vishnu in Thailand is from Wat Sala Tung in Surat Thani Province and has been dated to ~400 CE.

Out of the ten, Rama and Krishna avatars are most important.

Ramcharitmanas

Epic poem in the Awadhi language, composed by the 16th-century Indian bhakti poet Tulsidas (c.

Picture of author, Tulsidas published in the Ramcharitmanas, 1949.

A Ramlila actor playing Ravana in traditional attire.

The birth of the four sons of Dasharatha.

Vishvamitra looks as Ram breaks the bow, to win the hand of Sita in marriage.

Rama, Sita and Lakshman meeting Sage Bharadwaj at his ashram in Prayag.

Bharata asks for Rama's paduka (footwear).

Ravana fights Jatayu as he carries off the kidnapped Sita.

Lakshman meets with Tara, Sugriva and Hanuman in the Palace of Kishkandha

Hanuman searching for the Sanjivani herb.

Rama touches the stone by his foot, which turns to Ahalya

1532–1623). (This work is also called, in popular parlance, Tulasi Ramayana.) The word Ramcharitmanas literally means "Lake of the deeds of Rama".

Ramlila (Rāmlīlā) (literally 'Rama’s lila or play') is any dramatic folk re-enactment of the life of Rama according to the ancient Hindu epic Ramayana or secondary literature based on it such as the Ramcharitmanas.

Avatar

Concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent".

Sharabha (right) with Narasimha (18th-century painting, Pahari/Kangra School)

The most known and celebrated avatars of Vishnu, within the Vaishnavism traditions of Hinduism, are Krishna, Rama, Narayana and Vasudeva.

Dasharatha

The king of the Kosala kingdom and a scion of the Suryavanshi dynasty in Hindu mythology.

A maid of Queen Kaikeyi named Manthara convinced her that the throne of Maharaja Dasharatha belonged to her son Bharata, and that her stepson, crown prince Rama (the hero of the Ramayana)— should be exiled from the kingdom.