The Ramayana: The Eternal Story of Rama An Original Modern Retelling of India's Timeless Epic
Two thousand years ago, a hermit watched a hunter's arrow bring down a bird in the reeds - and out of his grief was born the greatest story ever told.
The Ramayana is the epic of Prince Rama, heir to a golden kingdom, who on the eve of his coronation is exiled to the forest for fourteen years - walking away from a throne, a family, and a city that adored him, because a promise must be kept even when it breaks the heart. At his side go Sita, his beloved wife, and Lakshmana, his devoted brother. In the wilderness they will find friendship in the shape of a monkey, devotion in the shape of a god, and an enemy ten-headed and terrible, who will test them to the very limits of what a human being can endure.
This is the story of a woman stolen and a man who crossed an ocean for her; of a bridge built from floating stones; of a war fought at the gates of a golden city; of love, duty, grief, and homecoming. It is the story that shaped a continent - told and retold by a billion voices from India to Indonesia, on temple walls and in bedtime whispers.
Faithful to the ancient Valmiki Ramayana and enriched by the great tellings of Tulsidas, Kamba, and the traditions of Asia, this original retelling brings the timeless epic to modern readers in vivid, accessible prose. Complete with character studies, themes, symbols, fifty life lessons, more than a hundred frequently asked questions, a glossary, a timeline, a family tree, and a descriptive atlas of the epic's great places.
Whether you come as a lover of mythology, a spiritual seeker, a student, or a reader in search of one of the most magnificent stories ever told - set out with Rama.
