Rama: Difference between revisions

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{{Use Indian English|date=October 2019}}

{{Infobox deity

| type = Hindu

| name = Rama

| Devanagari = राम

| Sanskrit_transliteration = {{IAST|Rāma}}

| spouse = [[Sita]]{{sfn|James G. Lochtefeld|2002|p=555}}

| weapon = [[Bow and arrow]]s

| birth_place = [[Ayodhya]], [[Kosala]] (present-day [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[India]])

| gender = Male

| successor = [[Lava (Ramayana)|Lava]]

}}

{{Hinduism small}}{{Contains special characters|Sanskrit}}{{Vaishnavism}}

==Etymology and nomenclature==

''Rama'' as a first name appears in the Vedic literature, associated with two patronymic names – Margaveya and Aupatasvini – representing different individuals. A third individual named ''Rama Jamadagnya'' is the purported author of hymn 10.110 of the ''[[Rigveda]]'' in the Hindu tradition.<ref name=mmwrama/> The word ''Rama'' appears in ancient literature in reverential terms for three individuals:<ref name=mmwrama/>

The Vishnu avatar named Rama is also known by other names. He is called ''Ramachandra'' (beautiful, lovely moon),<ref name=parpola264>{{cite book|author=Asko Parpola|title=Studia Orientalia, Volume 84|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jkBZAAAAMAAJ |year=1998|publisher=Finnish Oriental Society|isbn=978-951-9380-38-4|page=264}}</ref> or ''Dasarathi'' (son of Dasaratha), or ''Raghava'' (descendant of Raghu, solar dynasty in Hindu cosmology).<ref name=mmwrama/><ref>{{cite book|author1=Wagenaar|first=Hank W.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_kWROaer5UsC&pg=PA528|title=Allied Chambers transliterated Hindi-Hindi-English dictionary|last2=Parikh|first2=S. S.|publisher=Allied Publishers|year=1993|isbn=978-81-86062-10-4|page=528}}</ref> He is also known as Ram Lalla ''(Infant form of Rama)''.<ref name="News18RamLalla19">{{Cite web|title=Ayodhya Case Verdict: Who is Ram Lalla Virajman, the 'Divine Infant' Given the Possession of Disputed Ayodhya Land|url=https://www.news18.com/news/india/ayodhya-case-verdict-who-is-ram-lalla-virajman-the-divine-infant-given-the-possession-of-disputed-ayodhya-land-2379679.html|date=9 November 2019|access-date=4 August 2020|website=News18}}</ref>

The root of the word ''Rama'' is ''ram-'' which means "stop, stand still, rest, rejoice, be pleased".<ref name=parpola264/>

==Legends==

===Birth===

[[File:Ayodhya Nagri.jpg|thumb|300px|Gold carving depiction of the legendary [[Ayodhya (Ramayana)|Ayodhya]] at the [[Ajmer Jain temple]]]]

[[Dasharatha]] was the king of [[Kosala]], and a part of the [[solar dynasty]] of [[Iksvaku]]s. His mother's name [[Kausalya|Kaushalya]] literally implies that she was from Kosala. The kingdom of Kosala is also mentioned in [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] and [[Jain literature|Jain texts]], as one of the sixteen ''[[Mahajanapadas|Maha janapadas]]'' of [[ancient India]], and as an important center of pilgrimage for Jains and Buddhists.<ref name="Guruge1991p51">{{cite book|author=A. W. P. Guruge |title=The Society of the Ramayana |url=https://archive.org/details/trent_0116402264364 |url-access=registration |year=1991|publisher=Abhinav Publications|isbn=978-81-7017-265-9|pages=[https://archive.org/details/trent_0116402264364/page/51 51]–54}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=John Cort|title=Framing the Jina: Narratives of Icons and Idols in Jain History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MDBpq23-0QoC|year=2010|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-973957-8|pages=160–162, 196, 314 note 14, 318 notes 57–58}}, Quote (p. 314): "(...) Kosala was the kingdom centered on Ayodhya, in what is now east-central Uttar Pradesh."</ref> However, there is a scholarly dispute whether the modern Ayodhya is indeed the same as the Ayodhya and Kosala mentioned in the ''Ramayana'' and other ancient Indian texts.<ref name=veer157>{{cite book|author=Peter van der Veer|title=Religious Nationalism: Hindus and Muslims in India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p29ArJ7j6zgC&pg=PA157|year=1994|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-08256-4|pages=157–162}}</ref>{{refn|group=lower-greek|Kosala is mentioned in many Buddhist texts and travel memoirs. The Buddha idol of Kosala is important in the Theravada Buddhism tradition, and one that is described by the 7th-century Chinese pilgrim Xuanzhang. He states in his memoir that the statue stands in the capital of Kosala then called Shravasti, midst ruins of a large monastery. He also states that he brought back to China two replicas of the Buddha, one of the Kosala icon of Udayana and another the Prasenajit icon of Prasenajit.<ref>{{cite book|author=John Cort|title=Framing the Jina: Narratives of Icons and Idols in Jain History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MDBpq23-0QoC|year=2010|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-973957-8|pages=194–200, 318 notes 57–58}}</ref>}}

{{main|Bharata (Ramayana)|Lakshmana|Shatrughna}}

[[File:An early 20th century Hindu deity Rama painting.jpg|thumb|left|upright=0.8|Rama is portrayed in Hindu arts and texts as a compassionate person who cares for all living beings.<ref name=hindery106>{{cite book|author=Roderick Hindery|title=Comparative Ethics in Hindu and Buddhist Traditions |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-FswBLvTkvQC&pg=PA98 |year=1978|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-0866-9|pages=106–107}}</ref>]]

The years when Rama grew up are described in much greater detail by later Hindu texts, such as the ''Ramavali'' by [[Tulsidas]]. The template is similar to those found for [[Krishna]], but in the poems of [[Tulsidas]], Rama is milder and reserved introvert, rather than the prank-playing extrovert personality of Krishna.{{sfn|James G. Lochtefeld|2002|p=555}}

While Rama and his brothers were away, [[Kaikeyi]], the mother of Bharata and the second wife of King Dasharatha, reminds the king that he had promised long ago to comply with one thing she asks, anything. Dasharatha remembers and agrees to do so. She demands that Rama be exiled for fourteen years to Dandaka forest.<ref name="Dalal2010p326"/> Dasharatha grieves at her request. Her son Bharata, and other family members become upset at her demand. Rama states that his father should keep his word, adds that he does not crave for earthly or heavenly material pleasures, neither seeks power nor anything else. He talks about his decision with his wife and tells everyone that time passes quickly. [[Sita]] leaves with him to live in the forest, the brother [[Lakshmana]] joins them in their exile as the caring close brother.<ref name="Dalal2010p326"/>

===Exile and war===

{{See also|Ravana|Jatayu (Ramayana)|Hanuman|Vibheeshana}}

Rama exiled to Forest.jpg|Rama, along with his younger brother [[Lakshmana]] and wife [[Sita]], exiled to the forest.

Rama in Forest.jpg|Rama in Forest

Hanuman meets Sri Rama in Forest.jpg|[[Hanuman]] meets Rama in the forest.

</gallery>

After ten years of wandering and struggles, Rama arrives at Panchavati, on the banks of river Godavari. This region had numerous demons (''rakshashas''). One day, a demoness called Shurpanakha saw Rama, became enamored of him, and tried to seduce him.<ref name="Dalal2010p326"/> Rama refused her. Shurpanakha retaliated by threatening [[Sita]]. Lakshmana, the younger brother protective of his family, in turn retaliated by cutting off the nose and ears of [[Shurpanakha]]. The cycle of violence escalated, ultimately reaching demon king [[Ravana]], who was the brother of Shurpanakha. Ravana comes to [[Panchavati]] to take revenge on behalf of his family, sees Sita, gets attracted, and kidnaps her to his [[Lanka|kingdom of Lanka]] ''(believed to be modern [[Sri Lanka]])''.<ref name="Dalal2010p326"/><ref name=hindery99/>

Rama and [[Lakshmana]] discover the kidnapping, worry about Sita's safety, despair at the loss and their lack of resources to take on Ravana. Their struggles now reach new heights. They travel south, meet [[Sugriva]], marshall an army of monkeys, and attract dedicated commanders such as [[Hanuman]] who was a minister of Sugriva.<ref name="Ramayana">{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4Wzg6wFJ5xwC | title=Ramayana | publisher=University of California Press | author=B. A van Nooten William | year=2000 | isbn=978-0-520-22703-3}}</ref> Meanwhile, Ravana harasses Sita to be his wife, queen or goddess.{{sfn|Goldman|1996|page=406|ps=:<br>16. ... Ravana is represented as merely requesting that Sita stop thinking of him as an enemy and that she abandon her mistaken notion that he wants her to be his wife. By mentioning his chief queen, he is really saying that he wants Sita to be the chosen goddess of both him and his chief queen, Mandodari.}} Sita refuses him. Ravana gets enraged and ultimately reaches Lanka, fights in a war that has many ups and downs, but ultimately Rama prevails, kills Ravana and forces of evil, and rescues his wife Sita. They return to [[Ayodhya]].<ref name="Dalal2010p326"/>{{Sfn|Goldman|1996|p=90}}

[[File:Lord Rama Raj Tilak Ramayana.jpg|thumb|200px|Rama Raj Tilak from Ramayana]]

===Inconsistencies===

==Dating==

[[File:A relief summary of Ramayana at Hindu temple cave 16 Ellora India.jpg|thumb|left|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.<ref name=vatsyayan335>{{cite book|author=Kapila Vatsyayan|editor=Mandakranta Bose|title=The Ramayana Revisited |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Ar2Qfr-UeQC&pg=PA339 |year=2004|publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-516832-7|pages=335–339}}</ref>]]

The composition of Rama's epic story, the ''[[Ramayana]]'', in its current form is usually dated between 7th and 4th century BCE.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Parmeshwaranand|first=Swami|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6F0ZIBIL2ZAC|title=Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Puranas|date=2001a|publisher=Swarup & Sons|isbn=978-81-7625-226-3|language=en|author-link=Swami Prameyananda}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Archaeology: Indonesian Perspective : R.P. Soejono's Festschrift|first=Truman |last=Simanjuntak |page=361|year =2006}}</ref> According to John Brockington, a professor of Sanskrit at Oxford known for his publications on the ''Ramayana'', the original text was likely composed and transmitted orally in more ancient times, and modern scholars have suggested various centuries in the 1st millennium BCE. In Brockington's view, "based on the language, style and content of the work, a date of roughly the fifth century BCE is the most reasonable estimate".<ref>{{cite book|author1=John Brockington|author2=Mary Brockington|title=The Other Ramayana Women: Regional Rejection and Response |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GgQzDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA3 |year=2016|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-317-39063-3|pages=3–6}}</ref>

== Appearance ==

he has his clavicle concealed and is known by the people as Rama.

He has a voice (deep) like the sound of a kettledrum and glossy skin,

| volume = 67| issue = 1| pages = 1–32| doi = 10.1093/jaarel/67.1.1| pmid = 21994992}}</ref> He had within him all the desirable virtues that any individual would seek to aspire, and he fulfils all his moral obligations. Rama is considered a ''maryada purushottama'' or the best of upholders of Dharma.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LexraSEgRfIC&q=The+Blackwell+Companion+to+Hinduism|title=THE BLACKWELL COMPANION TO HINDUISM|author=Gavin Flood|isbn=978-81-265-1629-2|date=17 April 2008}}</ref>

Rama's life and comments emphasise that one must pursue and live life fully, that all three life aims are equally important: virtue (dharma), desires ([[kama]]), and legitimate acquisition of wealth ([[artha]]). Rama also adds, such as in section 4.38 of the ''[[Ramayana]]'', that one must also introspect and never neglect what one's proper duties, appropriate responsibilities, true interests, and legitimate pleasures are.<ref name=hindery106/>

[[File:Avatars.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Rama (left third from top) depicted in the [[Dashavatara]] (ten incornations) of Vishnu. Painting from [[Jaipur]], now at the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]].]]

Versions of the ''Ramayana'' exist in most major Indian languages; examples that elaborate on the life, deeds and divine philosophies of Rama include the epic poem ''[[Ramavataram]]'', and the following vernacular versions of Rama's life story:<ref>{{cite book|author1=Constance Jones|author2=James D. Ryan|title=Encyclopedia of Hinduism|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OgMmceadQ3gC |year=2006|publisher=Infobase Publishing|isbn=978-0-8160-7564-5|page=355}}</ref>

*[[Saptakanda Ramayana]] in [[Assamese language|Assamese]] by poet [[Madhava Kandali]]. (14th century)

*''[[Krittivasi Ramayan]]'' in [[Bengali language|Bengali]] by poet [[Krittibas Ojha]]. (15th century)

*''Ramayana Kalpavruksham'' by [[Viswanatha Satyanarayana]] and ''Ramayana'' by Ranganatha in [[Telugu language|Telugu]];

*''Vilanka Ramayana'' in [[Odia language|Odia]];

The epic is found across India, in different languages and cultural traditions.<ref>[http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/moynihan_sac_inside.aspx?id=36507224368&terms=Regional%20Ramayanas "The Oral Tradition and the many 'Ramayanas'"], Moynihan @Maxwell, [[Maxwell School]] of [[Syracuse University]]'s South Asian Center</ref>

===''Adhyatma Ramayana''===

===''Ramacharitmanas''===

The ''Ramacharitmanas'' is notable for being the Rama-based play commonly performed every year in autumn, during the weeklong performance arts festival of ''[[Ramlila]]''.<ref name="Jennifer Lindsay 2006 12–14"/> The "staging of the ''Ramayana'' based on the ''Ramacharitmanas''" was inscribed in 2008 by UNESCO as one of the Intangible Cultural Heritages of Humanity.<ref name="unescodussehra">{{Cite web|title=Ramlila-The traditional performance of Ramayana|url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/RL/ramlila-the-traditional-performance-of-the-ramayana-00110|access-date=8 March 2021|website=[[UNESCO]]}}</ref>

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''Yoga Vasistha'' is considered one of the most important texts of the [[Vedantic]] philosophy.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Tigunait|first=Rajmani|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gukW2iojhrQC&q=The+Himalayan+Masters:+A+Living+Tradition|title=The Himalayan Masters: A Living Tradition|date=2002|publisher=[[Himalayan University|Himalayan Institute Press]]|isbn=978-0-89389-227-2|location=[[Itanagar]]|pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=gukW2iojhrQC&newbks=0&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Himalayan+Masters:+A+Living+Tradition&hl=en&pg=PA33 33]|language=en}}</ref> The text, states David Gordon White, served as a reference on [[Yoga]] for medieval era Advaita Vedanta scholars.<ref name="whiteysxvi">{{cite book|last=White|first=David Gordon|title=The "Yoga Sutra of Patanjali": A Biography|publisher=[[Princeton University Press]]|year=2014|isbn=978-0-691-14377-4|pages=xvi–xvii, 51}}</ref> The Yoga Vasistha, according to White, was one of the popular texts on Yoga that dominated the Indian Yoga culture scene before the 12th century.<ref name=whiteysxvi/>

Other important historic Hindu texts on Rama include ''Bhusundi Ramanaya'', ''Prasanna raghava'', and  ''Ramavali'' by Tulsidas.{{sfn|James G. Lochtefeld|2002|p=555}}<ref>{{cite book|author=Edmour J. Babineau|url=https://archive.org/details/loveofgodsociald0000babi|title=Love of God and Social Duty in the Rāmcaritmānas|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|year=1979|isbn=978-0-89684-050-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/loveofgodsociald0000babi/page/85 85]–[https://archive.org/details/loveofgodsociald0000babi/page/85 86]|url-access=registration}}</ref> The Sanskrit poem ''[[Bhaṭṭikāvya]]'' of Bhatti, who lived in [[Gujarat]] in the seventh century CE, is a retelling of the epic that simultaneously illustrates the grammatical examples for [[Pāṇini]]'s ''Aṣṭādhyāyī'' as well as the major figures of speech and the [[Prakrit]] language.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bhaṭṭi|title=[[Bhaṭṭikāvya]]|publisher=[[Clay Sanskrit Library]]|year=600|isbn=978-0-8147-2778-2|location=[[New York City|New York]], [[United States]]|pages=22.35|translator-last=Olliver|translator-first=Fallon|orig-year=2009}}</ref>

The ''Mahabharata'' has a summary of the ''Ramayana''. The Jainism tradition has extensive literature of Rama as well, but generally refers to him as Padma, such as in the ''Paumacariya'' by Vimalasuri.<ref name=cort313/> Rama and Sita legend is mentioned in the Jataka tales of Buddhism, as ''[[Dasaratha Jataka|Dasaratha-Jataka]]'' (Tale no. 461), but with slightly different spellings such as ''Lakkhana'' for ''Lakshmana'' and ''Rama-pandita'' for ''Rama''.<ref name= Francis325>{{cite book|author1=H. T. Francis|author2=E. J. Thomas|title=Jataka Tales|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WYjRAwAAQBAJ |year=1916|publisher=Cambridge University Press (Reprinted: 2014) |isbn=978-1-107-41851-6|pages=325–330}}</ref><ref name="cowell78">{{cite book|author1=Cowell|first=E. B.|url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.553497|title=The Jātaka: Or, Stories of the Buddha's Former Births|last2=Rouse|first2=WHD|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|year=1901|pages=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.553497/page/n94 78–82]}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|author-link=Suvira Jaiswal |first=Suvira|last=Jaiswal|title=Historical Evolution of Ram Legend|journal=Social Scientist|date=1993|volume=21|issue=3 / 4 March April 1993|pages=89–96|doi=10.2307/3517633|jstor=3517633}}</ref>

==Influence==

[[File:Burmese Ramayana dance.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Rama (Yama) and Sita (Thida) in [[Yama Zatdaw]], the Burmese version of the Ramayana]]

<blockquote style="background-color:none;margin-right:5em;margin-left:0em;border-left:solid 6px #FFE0BB;padding:1.0em">

====Rama Navami====

{{main|Rama Navami}}

==== Ramlila and Dussehra====

Rama's life is remembered and celebrated every year with dramatic plays and fireworks in autumn. This is called [[Ramlila]], and the play follows ''[[Ramayana]]'' or more commonly the ''[[Ramcharitmanas]]''.{{sfn|James G. Lochtefeld|2002|p=389}} It is observed through thousands<ref name="SchechnerHess51"/> of Rama-related performance arts and dance events, that are staged during the festival of [[Navratri]] in [[India]].{{sfn | Encyclopedia Britannica | 2015}} After the enactment of the legendary war between Good and Evil, the Ramlila celebrations climax in the [[Dussehra]] (Dasara, [[Vijayadashami]]) night festivities where the giant grotesque effigies of Evil such as of demon Ravana are burnt, typically with fireworks.<ref name="unescodussehra"/><ref>{{Cite book|last=Kasbekar|first=Asha|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Sv7Uk0UcdM8C&q=Jatra+bengal&pg=PA44|title=Pop Culture India!: Media, Arts, and Lifestyle|date=2006|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-85109-636-7|language=en}}</ref>

====Diwali====

In some parts of India, Rama's return to Ayodhya and his coronation is the main reason for celebrating [[Diwali]], also known as the ''Festival of Lights''.{{Sfn|Gupta|1991|p=fontcover}}

====Hindu arts in Southeast Asia====

Rama's life story, both in the written form of Sanskrit ''Ramayana'' and the oral tradition arrived in southeast Asia in the 1st millennium CE.<ref name="Brandon2009p22">{{cite book|author=James R. Brandon|title=Theatre in Southeast Asia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g-tAlBV5_LkC |year=2009|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0-674-02874-6|pages=22–27}}</ref> Rama was one of many ideas and cultural themes adopted, others being the Buddha, the Shiva and host of other Brahmanic and Buddhist ideas and stories.<ref name="Brandon2009p15">{{cite book|author=Brandon|first=James R.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g-tAlBV5_LkC|title=Theatre in Southeast Asia|publisher=Harvard University Press|year=2009|isbn=978-0-674-02874-6|pages=15–21}}</ref> In particular, the influence of Rama and other cultural ideas grew in [[Java]], [[Bali]], [[Malaysia|Malaya]], [[Burma]], [[Thailand]], [[Cambodia]] and [[Laos]].<ref name="Brandon2009p15"/>

===Jainism===

{{see also|Rama in Jainism|Salakapurusa}}

In Jain [[cosmology]], characters continue to be reborn as they evolve in their spiritual qualities, until they reach the Jina state and complete enlightenment. This idea is explained as cyclically reborn triads in its Puranas, called the [[Balabhadra|Baladeva]], [[Vasudeva]] and evil [[Prati-vasudeva]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Jacobi|first=Herman|title=Vimalsuri's Paumachariyam|year=2005|publisher=Prakrit Text Society|location=Ahemdabad|edition=2nd}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Iyengar|first=Kodaganallur Ramaswami Srinivasa|title=Asian Variations in Ramayana|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CU92nFk5fU4C&pg=PA80

|year=2005|publisher=Sahitya Akademi|isbn=978-81-260-1809-3}}</ref> Rama, Lakshmana and evil Ravana are the eighth triad, with Rama being the reborn Baladeva, and Lakshmana as the reborn Vasudeva.<ref name= Padmanabh216>{{cite book|author=Padmanabh S Jaini| editor= Wendy Doniger|title= Purana Perennis: Reciprocity and Transformation in Hindu and Jaina Texts|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=-kZFzHCuiFAC |year= 1993|publisher= State University of New York Press|isbn=978-0-7914-1381-4|pages=216–219}}</ref> Rama is described to have lived long before the 22nd Jain Tirthankara called [[Neminatha]]. In the Jain tradition, Neminatha is believed to have been born 84,000 years before the 9th-century BCE [[Parshvanatha]].{{sfn|Zimmer|1953|p=226}}

===Buddhism===

At the end of this ''Dasaratha-Jataka'' discourse, the Buddhist text declares that the Buddha in his prior rebirth was Rama:

|Jataka Tale No. 461|Translator: W.H.D. Rouse<ref name=cowell78/>}}

In [[Assam]], [[Boro people]] call themselves ''Ramsa'', which means ''Children of Ram''.<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Dodiya|2001|p=139}}.</ref>

==Worship and temples==

[[File:Ram Temple, Ramtek - panoramio.jpg|thumb|Rama Temple at [[Ramtek]] (10th century, restored). A medieval inscription here calls Rama as ''Advaitavadaprabhu'' or "Lord of the Advaita doctrine".<ref>{{cite book|author=Hans Bakker|title=The History of Sacred Places in India As Reflected in Traditional Literature: Papers on Pilgrimage in South Asia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=McwUAAAAIAAJ |year=1990|publisher=BRILL|isbn=90-04-09318-4|pages=70–73}}</ref>]]

===Temples===

Hindu temples dedicated to Rama were built by early 5th century, according to copper plate inscription evidence, but these have not survived. The oldest surviving Rama temple is near [[Raipur]] (Chhattisgarh), called the Rajiva-locana temple at [[Rajim]] near the [[Mahanadi]] river. It is in a temple complex dedicated to Vishnu and dates back to the 7th-century with some restoration work done around 1145 CE based on epigraphical evidence.<ref>{{cite book|author=J. L. Brockington|title=The Sanskrit Epics |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HR-_LK5kl18C |year=1998| publisher=BRILL |isbn=90-04-10260-4|pages=471–472}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last=Meister | first=Michael W. | title=Prasada as Palace: Kutina Origins of the Nagara Temple | journal=Artibus Asiae | volume=49 | issue=3/4 | year=1988 | pages=254–280 (Figure 21) | doi=10.2307/3250039 | jstor=3250039 }}</ref> The temple remains important to Rama devotees in the contemporary times, with devotees and monks gathering there on dates such as [[Rama Navami]].<ref name="Harle1994p207">{{cite book|author=James C. Harle|title=The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent|url=https://archive.org/details/artarchitectureo00harl |url-access=registration|year=1994|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-300-06217-5|pages=[https://archive.org/details/artarchitectureo00harl/page/148 148]–149, 207–208}}</ref>

* [[Ram Mandir, Ayodhya|Rama temple]], [[Ram Janmabhoomi|Ram Janmabhoomi, Ayodhya]], [[Uttar Pradesh]].

* [[Bhadrachalam Temple]], [[Telangana]].

* [[Kodandarama Temple, Vontimitta]], [[Andhra Pradesh]].

* [[Ramaswamy Temple, Kumbakonam]]  

* [[Mudikondan Kothandaramar Temple]], [[Tamil Nadu]].

* [[Kalaram Temple]], [[Nashik]], [[Maharashtra]].

* [[Raghunath Temple]], [[Jammu district|Jammu]].

* [[Odogaon Raghunath Temple]], [[Odisha]].

* [[Ramchaura Mandir]], [[Bihar]].

* [[Vilwadrinatha Temple]], [[Thiruvilwamala]], [[Kerala]].

* {{harvnb|Blank|2000|p=190}}

* {{harvnb|Dodiya|2001|pp=109–110}}

==See also==

{{div col}}

* [[Ayodhya dispute]]

* [[Culture of India]]

* [[Genealogy of Rama]]

* ''[[Ramayana]]''

* [[Dashavatara]]

==References==

* {{cite book|last=Naidu|first=S. Shankar Raju|title=A Comparative Study of Kamba Ramayanam and Tulasi Ramayan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YmUOAAAAYAAJ|year=1971|publisher=University of Madras}}

* {{cite book|last1=Platvoet|first1=Jan. G.|last2=Toorn|first2=Karel Van Der|title=Pluralism and Identity: Studies in Ritual Behaviour|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=178X5n7zArwC&pg=PA191|year=1995|publisher=BRILL|isbn=90-04-10373-2}}

* {{Cite book|first=Ludo|last=Rocher|year=1986|author-link=Ludo Rocher|title=The Puranas|publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag|isbn=978-3-447-02522-5}}

* {{citation|last1=Schomer|first1=Karine|last2=McLeod|first2=W. H.|title=The Sants: Studies in a Devotional Tradition of India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OkKhOivXrhgC&pg=PA31|date=1 January 1987|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-0277-3}}

* {{cite book|author=Bassuk|title=Incarnation in Hinduism and Christianity: The Myth of the God-Man|first=Daniel E|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k3iwCwAAQBAJ|date=1987|publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers|Palgrave Macmillan]]|isbn=978-1-349-08642-9|ref={{SfnRef|Daniel E Bassuk|1987}}}}

* {{cite book|author=Parrinder|title=Avatar and Incarnation: The Divine in Human Form in the World's Religions|first=Edward Geoffrey|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VkV5AAAAMAAJ|year=1997|publisher=Oxford: Oneworld|isbn=978-1-85168-130-3|ref={{SfnRef|Edward Geoffrey Parrinder|1997}}}}

* {{cite book|author=Rinehart|title=Debating the Dasam Granth|first=Robin|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qe6WnpbT2BkC|year=2011|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|isbn=978-0-19-984247-6|ref={{SfnRef|Robin Rinehart|2011}}}}

* {{cite book|author=Lochtefeld|title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z|first=James G.|url=https://archive.org/details/illustratedencyc0000loch|url-access=registration|year=2002|publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-8239-3180-4|pages=|ref={{SfnRef|James G. Lochtefeld|2002}}}}

* {{cite book|author=Lamb|title=Rapt in the Name: The Ramnamis, Ramnam, and Untouchable Religion in Central India|first=Ramdas|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R51OEErb9g8C&pg=PA28|year=2012|publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-0-7914-8856-0|pages=28–32|ref={{SfnRef|Ramdas Lamb|2012}}}}

*{{Cite book|last=Gupta|first=Shakti M.|url=https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Festivals_Fairs_and_Fasts_of_India/XQjgAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0|title=Festivals, Fairs, and Fasts of India|publisher=Clarion Books|year=1991|location=[[University of Indiana]], [[United States]]|isbn=9-788-185-12023-2|oclc=1108734495}}

* {{cite book|first=Roderick|last=Hindery|title=Comparative Ethics in Hindu and Buddhist Traditions|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-FswBLvTkvQC&pg=PA98|year=1978|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-0866-9}}

*{{Cite book|last=Goldman|first=Robert P.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sFmsrEszbxgC|title=The Ramayan of Valmiki|publisher=[[Princeton University Press]]|year=1996|isbn=978-0-691-06662-2|location=[[New Jersey]], [[United States]]|author-link=Robert P. Goldman}}

{{refend}}

* {{citation|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/24869|title=Ramayana|author-link=Ralph T. H. Griffith|last=Griffith|publisher=[[Project Gutenberg]]}}

* {{cite book|author=Willem Frederik Stutterheim|title=Rāma-legends and Rāma-reliefs in Indonesia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OoitUqGk8PAC|year=1989|publisher=Abhinav Publications|isbn=978-81-7017-251-2}}

*{{cite book|author1=J. P. Mallory|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tzU3RIV2BWIC|title=Encyclopedia of Indo-European Culture|author2=Douglas Q. Adams|publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]]|year=1997|isbn=978-1-884964-98-5|ref={{SfnRef|Maloory and en|1997}}}}

* {{cite book|last=Menon|first=Ramesh|author-link=Ramesh Menon|orig-year=2004|year=2008|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JmQuLwAACAAJ|title=The Ramayana: A Modern Retelling of the Great Indian Epic|isbn=978-0-86547-660-8}}

{{Ramayana}}

{{HinduAvatars}}

[[Category:Rama| ]]

[[Category:Ancient Indian culture]]

[[Category:Asian rulers]]

[[Category:Avatars of Vishnu]]

[[Category:Ayyavazhi mythology]]

[[Category:Buddhist gods]]

[[Category:Characters in the Mahabharata]]

[[Category:Characters in the Ramayana]]

[[Category:Creator gods]]

[[Category:Heavenly attendants in Jainism]]

[[Category:Hindu given names]]

[[Category:Hindu gods]]

[[Category:Names of God in Hinduism]]

[[Category:Salakapurusa]]

[[Category:Savior gods]]

[[Category:Names of God in Sikhism]]

[[Category:Kshatriya]]

[[Category:Suryavansha]]