The Ramayana by Rasipuram Krishnaswami Lyer Narayanaswami - Essay Example

In the novel The Ramayana, written by R.K Narayan, we see a battle take place. The battles are always between the higher powers, powers that greatly surpass our own human existence. The battle is between the gods and demons. As the story commences, we see that the Hindu god Vishnu is fighting a demon by the name of Ravana. In order for Vishnu to be able to fight Ravana successfully, he had to be reborn as a man. Vishnu, the Hindu God was therefore born as the prince Rama. From the start, deception is present. Rama and his wife Sita try to flee and live a life of solidarity and silence. During this time, the demon’s sister falls in love with Rama and tries to get him to leave his wife Sita. He was later attacked because of his negative response to the proposition laid out before him. Both Rama and his brother fought the attackers off.

               Ravana was still determined to get Rama so he lied and said that Rama’s wife had been mean to him and had attacked him. Ravana was trying to find a way to get at Rama and was holding a grudge. He was very upset because Rama had taken force on his sister in the act of protecting himself. It was done in self-defense.

               In an act of rage, Ravana ceased Rama’s wife and took her back to live with him. This was done by force. Rama gained help from the outside to get his wife back. Regardless of the situation, he was afraid that his wife had not been faithful to him and cast her out of his life. She was carrying twin boys who eventually ended up living with him. Rama eventually kills Ravana but not without a huge struggle.

               Rama “put” Sita through challenges. As a husband, he felt he had the right to “make sure” Sita still belonged to him. The way Rama treated Sita was immoral. But he was in reality a God. So, did he have the right to treat a human this way? As a God, Rama should know her heart and her thoughts. Rama should be aware of who she is as a person. Bringing her to his level of intelligence would have given her more dignity as a person.  Abusing his power and manhood only created more scars on his hands.                              

               Rama knew of her innocence because he was a god. God’s aware of everything that happens on this earth, above and below the earth. However, because he had become human, humans, unfortunately, succumb to the rumors and the ideals of others. For the time he was “testing” his wife, he was being influenced by the outside world, which as humans, it is easy to do!

               Her revenge? Was she revengeful? I must venture to say that revenge was not on her list of things to do. She felt belittled by the fact that he would not believe her when she said she loved him. She was upset because the trust factor was no longer present. So she challenges herself. She asks Lakshmana to build a fire. If she has done anything wrong, the fire will definitely burn her. As the fire blazes and crackles, Rama realizes that the flames do not burn her. In this way, she is able to prove her purity.

               The death of Lakshmana was a result of a commitment to the dharma. The sons didn’t actually “kill” Lakshmana but instead, he did penitence and was admitted into the heavens. He had this odd pact. He was not supposed to let anyone into the “gates” and one day, he himself needed advice and went to the very place people were not to go. Instead of being slain, he chose to do penitence for his actions.

               So how is it that we choose to face the day? How do our life decisions affect our minute-to-minute results? It is obvious that morality and ethics will reign in this very place. However, it’s not morality that affects a person, it’s what the person chooses to do as a result of their morality. Even in Hindu writings, we find morality to be the basis and building block of life itself. If people choose to follow, they will go according to religion, tradition, and beliefs, they will then live a life of prosperity.