Ram and Raavan
The Ramayan boasts of two strong men: Ram and Raavan. The former worshipped in North India, while Raavan is a legendary hero of modern Lanka's modern economy.
Given the Ram frenzy building up, Raavan's lead role in Sri Lanka tourism, and its legendary ‘Pearl in the Ocean’ status, now needs reinforcing beyond the existing references and beliefs showcased by Lankan tourist industry.
Ayodhya too needs archaeological evidence to bolster the "belief" of being the real birthplace of Lord Ram, which is not mentioned in any early text. The city boasts of numerous temples, where birthplace tag is quietly contested by some temples' attendants.
Sri Lanka, a small blessed island did not take long after Independence to ring in a positive edge to its economy. But it paid a heavy price for rapid action when Buddhist vs Tamil politics mingled with international economic jousting to ring in decades of Civil Wars.
Tourism flared with the famed Ramayana Trails to help revival. South and East are riddled with recreations of places connected with the epic, the grove where Sita lived, the pool where she bathed, the quarters of those who looked after her, the scorched soil of the landing site where the Pushpak vimana in which she was flown to Lanka, the battlefields, the mountain with medicinal herbs that Hanuman brought to treat Lakshman, forest trails, tunnels, riverine sites etc.
These find a place in the tourist circuits, quite apart from the numerous modern resorts showing off Lanka’s natural beauty.
Now the hunt for one kingpin hinges to prove that Raavan was all that Lankans believe he was: a gifted ruler of legendary greatness, wealth and knowledge, with so much learning of the Vedas and other ancient texts of knowledge that he needed ten heads to contain all of it.
Lankans firmly refute the orge image painted in North India, for which his effigy is horrifically burnt every year at Dusshera when massive effigies are ceremoniously ignited. While in the South, he is being worshipped for as Lord Shiva's greatest devotee who appeased him with his mastery over the Shiv Tandav dance; who created the intricate musical instrument, the veena from his own body parts and mastered the art of playing heavenly music on it; ran an immaculate, efficient and stupendously prosperous kingdom at Lanka that he got from his stepbrother Kuber; with connects going all the way to Pataala Nagri which was across oceans in Brazil!
The North reviles him as the defiler of the wife of Maryada Purshottam Ram, despite the woes of Sita, forced to clear a burning test to be respected by Ram as his wife; soon after, he exiled a pregnant Sita to satisfy the ego of a disbelieving washerman; these find no consideration in the macho Ram scenario, except in the writings of feminist writers. It is another matter that South India celebrates Raavan as a scholar and a Shiva devotee.
Ironically there are also writings that indicate that perhaps Raavan was the biological father of Sita and kidnapped her to separate her from Ram, perhaps to test the virginal puppy love bred by a handsome Prince, now in deep trouble?
Hence sensitive archaeology is vital before too much history is submerged under modern development projects and building activities to accommodate global interest in Sri Lanka’s vantage location in the Indian Ocean.
While Lanka needs authentic archaeological proof of Raavan's legendary city, Ayodhya's war-cry for a temple at the disputed birthplace also needs that missing logical and archeological proofs beyond ancient records that only go to the earliest Buddhist times; before that, its earlier avatar, Ajodya, a major trade centre that found mention as the capital of the Ikshvaku kings.
Earlier digs indicated that was abandoned around 1426 BCE; that rebuilt temples also fell into disrepair. The Buddha taught at Savatthi 58 km from Ayodhya, attracting numerous pilgrims including Fa Hien and Hieun Tsang from China. Neither mentioned it as The birthplace of Ram. The city was then called Oudh. Later it developed into a great Buddhist and trade centre for centuries, before Buddhism went out of favor in India.
Against the considerable archeological evidence of the places mentioned in the Mahabharat, empirical evidence of Ajodhya, Chitrakoot, Dandakaranya, Panchavati, Videha, Kosala remain elusive. Hence the need to unearth evidence to bolster arguments for the purported Birthplace, apart from “people believe”. What little is available is that which was consecrated after Tulsidas’ Ramayan, centuries later, followed by controversies actively fostered under colonial rule.
When the focus shifted back to the original, the Valmiki Ramayan, scholars saw exciting hope in intriguing mentions of distinct landmarks in the four-pronged hunt for Sita in confinement after her abduction by Raavan.
Closer examination revealed that most were related to sites that may possibly be out of the Subcontinent, from east to South America to west beyond West Asia, perhaps the Urals in Russia?
Those studies apart, the issue at hand remains the similar concerns for archaeological proofs of the authenticity of Ram’s birthplace over which much bloodshed has happened in the recent past; and of validation of the numerous legends that question the evil mantle conferred on Raavan. These questions find resonance not only Lanka and South India, but also in other neighboring countries with Ramayan legends of their own and some of the numerous Ramayans.
Given the Ram frenzy building up, Raavan's lead role in Sri Lanka tourism, and its legendary ‘Pearl in the Ocean’ status, now needs reinforcing beyond the existing references and beliefs showcased by Lankan tourist industry.
Ayodhya too needs archaeological evidence to bolster the "belief" of being the real birthplace of Lord Ram, which is not mentioned in any early text. The city boasts of numerous temples, where birthplace tag is quietly contested by some temples' attendants.
Sri Lanka, a small blessed island did not take long after Independence to ring in a positive edge to its economy. But it paid a heavy price for rapid action when Buddhist vs Tamil politics mingled with international economic jousting to ring in decades of Civil Wars.
Tourism flared with the famed Ramayana Trails to help revival. South and East are riddled with recreations of places connected with the epic, the grove where Sita lived, the pool where she bathed, the quarters of those who looked after her, the scorched soil of the landing site where the Pushpak vimana in which she was flown to Lanka, the battlefields, the mountain with medicinal herbs that Hanuman brought to treat Lakshman, forest trails, tunnels, riverine sites etc.
These find a place in the tourist circuits, quite apart from the numerous modern resorts showing off Lanka’s natural beauty.
Now the hunt for one kingpin hinges to prove that Raavan was all that Lankans believe he was: a gifted ruler of legendary greatness, wealth and knowledge, with so much learning of the Vedas and other ancient texts of knowledge that he needed ten heads to contain all of it.
Lankans firmly refute the orge image painted in North India, for which his effigy is horrifically burnt every year at Dusshera when massive effigies are ceremoniously ignited. While in the South, he is being worshipped for as Lord Shiva's greatest devotee who appeased him with his mastery over the Shiv Tandav dance; who created the intricate musical instrument, the veena from his own body parts and mastered the art of playing heavenly music on it; ran an immaculate, efficient and stupendously prosperous kingdom at Lanka that he got from his stepbrother Kuber; with connects going all the way to Pataala Nagri which was across oceans in Brazil!
The North reviles him as the defiler of the wife of Maryada Purshottam Ram, despite the woes of Sita, forced to clear a burning test to be respected by Ram as his wife; soon after, he exiled a pregnant Sita to satisfy the ego of a disbelieving washerman; these find no consideration in the macho Ram scenario, except in the writings of feminist writers. It is another matter that South India celebrates Raavan as a scholar and a Shiva devotee.
Ironically there are also writings that indicate that perhaps Raavan was the biological father of Sita and kidnapped her to separate her from Ram, perhaps to test the virginal puppy love bred by a handsome Prince, now in deep trouble?
Hence sensitive archaeology is vital before too much history is submerged under modern development projects and building activities to accommodate global interest in Sri Lanka’s vantage location in the Indian Ocean.
While Lanka needs authentic archaeological proof of Raavan's legendary city, Ayodhya's war-cry for a temple at the disputed birthplace also needs that missing logical and archeological proofs beyond ancient records that only go to the earliest Buddhist times; before that, its earlier avatar, Ajodya, a major trade centre that found mention as the capital of the Ikshvaku kings.
Earlier digs indicated that was abandoned around 1426 BCE; that rebuilt temples also fell into disrepair. The Buddha taught at Savatthi 58 km from Ayodhya, attracting numerous pilgrims including Fa Hien and Hieun Tsang from China. Neither mentioned it as The birthplace of Ram. The city was then called Oudh. Later it developed into a great Buddhist and trade centre for centuries, before Buddhism went out of favor in India.
Against the considerable archeological evidence of the places mentioned in the Mahabharat, empirical evidence of Ajodhya, Chitrakoot, Dandakaranya, Panchavati, Videha, Kosala remain elusive. Hence the need to unearth evidence to bolster arguments for the purported Birthplace, apart from “people believe”. What little is available is that which was consecrated after Tulsidas’ Ramayan, centuries later, followed by controversies actively fostered under colonial rule.
When the focus shifted back to the original, the Valmiki Ramayan, scholars saw exciting hope in intriguing mentions of distinct landmarks in the four-pronged hunt for Sita in confinement after her abduction by Raavan.
Closer examination revealed that most were related to sites that may possibly be out of the Subcontinent, from east to South America to west beyond West Asia, perhaps the Urals in Russia?
Those studies apart, the issue at hand remains the similar concerns for archaeological proofs of the authenticity of Ram’s birthplace over which much bloodshed has happened in the recent past; and of validation of the numerous legends that question the evil mantle conferred on Raavan. These questions find resonance not only Lanka and South India, but also in other neighboring countries with Ramayan legends of their own and some of the numerous Ramayans.
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