A Woman's Ramayana

A Woman's Ramayana PDF Author: Mandakranta Bose
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135071268
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 174

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Book Description
The Rāmāyana, an ancient epic of India, with audiences across vast stretches of time and geography, continues to influence numberless readers socially and morally through its many re-tellings. Made available in English for the first time, the 16th century version presented here is by Candrāvatī, a woman poet from Bengal. It is a highly individual rendition as a tale told from a woman's point of view which, instead of celebrating masculine heroism, laments the suffering of women caught in the play of male ego. This book presents a translation and commentary on the text, with an extensive introduction that scrutinizes its social and cultural context and correlates its literary identity with its ideological implications. Taken together, the narrative and the critical study offered here expand the understanding both of the history of women’s self-expression in India and the cultural potency of the epic tale. The book is of interest equally to students and researchers of South Asian narratives, Rāmāyana studies and gender issues.

A Woman's Ramayana

A Woman's Ramayana PDF Author: Mandakranta Bose
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135071268
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 174

Get Book

Book Description
The Rāmāyana, an ancient epic of India, with audiences across vast stretches of time and geography, continues to influence numberless readers socially and morally through its many re-tellings. Made available in English for the first time, the 16th century version presented here is by Candrāvatī, a woman poet from Bengal. It is a highly individual rendition as a tale told from a woman's point of view which, instead of celebrating masculine heroism, laments the suffering of women caught in the play of male ego. This book presents a translation and commentary on the text, with an extensive introduction that scrutinizes its social and cultural context and correlates its literary identity with its ideological implications. Taken together, the narrative and the critical study offered here expand the understanding both of the history of women’s self-expression in India and the cultural potency of the epic tale. The book is of interest equally to students and researchers of South Asian narratives, Rāmāyana studies and gender issues.

A Woman's Ramayana

A Woman's Ramayana PDF Author: Mandakranta Bose
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 113507125X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 166

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Book Description
The Rāmāyana, an ancient epic of India, with audiences across vast stretches of time and geography, continues to influence numberless readers socially and morally through its many re-tellings. Made available in English for the first time, the 16th century version presented here is by Candrāvatī, a woman poet from Bengal. It is a highly individual rendition as a tale told from a woman's point of view which, instead of celebrating masculine heroism, laments the suffering of women caught in the play of male ego. This book presents a translation and commentary on the text, with an extensive introduction that scrutinizes its social and cultural context and correlates its literary identity with its ideological implications. Taken together, the narrative and the critical study offered here expand the understanding both of the history of women’s self-expression in India and the cultural potency of the epic tale. The book is of interest equally to students and researchers of South Asian narratives, Rāmāyana studies and gender issues.

Chandrabati’s Ramayan

Chandrabati’s Ramayan PDF Author: Chandrabati
Publisher: Zubaan
ISBN: 8194721873
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 102

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Book Description
Chandrabati, the first woman poet in Bangla, lived in the sixteenth century in Mymensingh district in present day Bangladesh. She was also the first poet in the Bangla language to present a retelling of the Ram story from the point of view of Sita. Idolised as a model of marital obedience and chastity in Valmiki’s Ramayan, Chandrabati’s lyrical retelling of Sita’s story offers us a fresh perspective. Written in order to be sung before a non-courtly audience, mainly of womenfolk of rural Bengal, Chandrabati’s Ramayan adds new characters and situations to the story to provide new interpretations of already known events drawing richly on elements of existing genres. Its location in the tales of everyday life has ensured that Chandrabati’s Ramayan lives on in the hearts of village women of modern-day India.

Sita's Ramayana

Sita's Ramayana PDF Author: Samhita Arni
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781554981458
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
The Ramayana is an epic poem by the Hindu sage Valmiki, written in ancient Sanskrit sometime after 300 BC. It is an allegorical story that contains important Hindu teachings, and it has had great influence on Indian life and culture over the centuries. Children are often encouraged to emulate the virtues of the two main characters -- Rama and Sita. The Ramayana is frequently performed as theater or dance, and two Indian festivals -- Dussehra and Divali -- celebrate events in the story. This version of The Ramayana is told from the perspective of Sita, the queen. After she, her husband Rama and his brother are exiled from their kingdom, Sita is captured by the proud and arrogant king Ravana and imprisoned in a garden across the ocean. Ravana never stops trying to convince Sita to be his wife, but she steadfastly refuses his advances. Eventually Rama comes to her rescue with the help of the monkey Hanuman and his army. But Rama feels he can't trust Sita again. He forces Sita to undergo an ordeal by fire to prove herself to be true and pure. She is shocked and in grief and anger does so. She emerges unscathed and they return home to their kingdom as king and queen. However, suspicion haunts their relationship, and Sita once more finds herself in the forest, but this time she is pregnant. She has twins and continues to live in the forest with them. The story is exciting and dramatic, with many turns of plot. Magic animals, snakes, divine gods, demons, sorcerers and a vast cast of characters all play a part in the fierce battles fought to win Sita back. And in the process the story explores ideas of right vs. wrong, compassion, loyalty, trust, honor and the terrible price of war.

The Liberation of Sita

The Liberation of Sita PDF Author: Volga
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 9352775023
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 128

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Book Description
Valmiki's Ramayana is the story of Rama's exile and return to Ayodhya, of a triumphant king who will always do right by his subjects. In Volga's retelling, it is Sita who, after being abandoned by Purushottam Rama, embarks on an arduous journey towards self-realization. Along the way, she meets extraordinary women who have broken free from all that held them back: husbands, sons, and their notions of desire, beauty and chastity. The minor women characters of the epic as we know it -- Surpanakha, Renuka, Urmila and Ahalya -- steer Sita towards an unexpected resolution. Meanwhile, Rama too must reconsider and weigh his roles as the king of Ayodhya and as a man deeply in love with his wife. A powerful subversion of India's most popular tale of morality, choice and sacrifice, The Liberation of Sita opens up new spaces within the old discourse, enabling women to review their lives and experiences afresh. This is Volga at her feminist best.

Women of Ramayan

Women of Ramayan PDF Author: Kunal Kaushal
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
This book tells the stories of five women of Rāmāyaṇ who not only avenged themselves against the most powerful people of those times but also won justice for the weak and downtrodden. In the process, the book reimagines the events of past by removing the thick layers of fantasy and hyperbole. While keeping the stories realistic and reasonable, and passing the stringent tests of logic and credibility, the book answers several rarely asked questions. WHY and HOW did Ahalyā mastermind the downfall of Indra - the most influential person of those times? Kaikeyī take revenge against her adversaries - Kauśalyā and Vasiṣtha? Śūrpaṇakhā plot the death of her own brother? Mandodarī protect her biggest rival, Sitā? Tārā engineer the murder of her own husband? The book challenges the popular perception of these five women. Step by step, it demolishes the false myths about them that have taken deep roots in our collective conscience. The book goes on to prove a singular fact - they were women of such substance that despite all obstacles, they managed to carve a significant and unique space for themselves in Indian history.

The Other Ramayana Women

The Other Ramayana Women PDF Author: John Brockington
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317390636
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 204

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Book Description
This book is the first to present current scholarship on gender and in regional and sectarian versions of the Rāmāyaṇa. Contributors explore in what ways the versions relate to other Rāmāyaṇa texts as they deal with the female persona and the cultural values implicit in them. Using a wide variety of approaches, both analytical and descriptive, the authors discover common ground between narrative variants even as their diversity is recognized. It offers an analysis in the shaping of the heterogeneous Rāma tradition through time as it can be viewed from the perspective of narrating women's lives. Through the analysis of the representation and treatment of female characters, narrative inventions, structural design, textual variants, and the idiom of composition and technique in art and sculpture are revealed and it is shown what and in which way these alternative versions are unique. A sophisticated exploration of the Rāmāyaṇa, this book is of great interest to academics in the fields of South Asian Studies, Asian Religion, Asian Gender and Cultural Studies.

Women of the Ramayana

Women of the Ramayana PDF Author: StoryBuddiesPlay
Publisher: StoryBuddiesPlay
ISBN:
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 50

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Book Description
Delve into the untold stories of the Ramayana's powerful women. Go beyond the epic's heroes and explore the complexities of Kaikeyi, Mandodari, Surpanakha, and others. Discover their motivations, desires, and the societal pressures that shaped their choices. This exploration delves into themes of ambition, loyalty, revenge, and the limitations and triumphs of female agency within an ancient world. Uncover the enduring legacy of these characters, how they have been reinterpreted throughout history, and their continuing impact on cultural understanding of women's roles. This analysis sheds light on the evolving perspectives within Hindu mythology, challenging stereotypes and revealing the diverse experiences of female characters across different narratives. Whether seeking a deeper understanding of the Ramayana or intrigued by the portrayal of women in ancient mythology, this exploration offers a fresh perspective on these timeless characters and their enduring significance.

Valmikis Women

Valmikis Women PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN: 9789390679867
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 226

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Book Description


Crossing Boundaries

Crossing Boundaries PDF Author: Geeti Sen
Publisher: Orient Blackswan
ISBN: 9788125013419
Category : Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 316

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Book Description
To commemorate fifty years of Independence in the subcontinent it seems appropriate to cut across the borders which separate Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. This book is a collection of outstanding essays, containing 45 black and white photographs, includes contributions by authors and artists from all three countries of the subcontinent.