what is the religious significance of the ramayana ???

Answer 1

Ramayana is a human epic. It depicts the trials of a human being his joys and sorrows, the responsibility and behaviour of kings, Up holding of moral, Non deviation from truth etc
Rama the hero of Ramayana was an incarnation of Vishnu and his wife sita was Lakshmi the wife of Vishnu.Rama as a human being is called as "Maryada Purushottama" meaning most elevated man in his full virtue.
It was an example set for behaviour of human beings with their family, friends., people of society, elderly and respected gurus, Younger brothers and people of lower strata of the society etc
So the birth day of Rama and his Marriage with sita are celebrated as important Hindu festivals during which discourses are given by learn ed scholars based on the incidents of Ramayana.

Answer 2

It depends on the sect of Hinduism, although many celebrations are centered around Rama, the hero of the story who is also an (Important) incarnation of Vishnu. Basically, it is the story of a journy and rescue by Rama of his wife Sita where it outlines some laws of life, as well as introduces important hindu gods like Hanuman the monkey god, as well as featuring the basic good over evil motif. It's really such an interesting read.

A more important book for Hindus (again depending on the sect) is the Bhagavad Gita which is a lengthy book describing in detail a conversation Krishna had with Arjuna outlining a lot of things that are still practiced today- like the yogas, and devotion rituals. That's taken from the Mhabarata, which like the Ramayana is an epic tale of good winning over evil.

Answer 3

Culture Of Ramayana

Answer 4

A classical Sanskrit epic of India, probably composed in the 3d cent. B.C.

Based on numerous legends, it is traditionally the work of Valmiki, one of the minor characters.

The epic was revised and set down in its best-known form by the poet Tulsi Das (1532–1623).

The Ramayana, because of its single subject, has more unity and is far shorter than the Mahabharata, the other great Indian epic. In the many different recensions of the work, there are from 24,000 to 43,000 couplets of 16-syllable lines.

Incorporating much earlier sacred material from the Veda, the Ramayana relates the adventures of Rama, who, together with his three half brothers, collectively made up the seventh avatar (incarnation) of the Hindu god Vishnu. Rama was deprived by guile of the throne of Ayodhya and forced into a long exile with his wife, Sita, the prototype of noble womanhood. When Sita was abducted by a demon, Rama allied himself with the king of the monkeys, Sugriva, and the monkey general, Hanuman, and fought a mighty battle in Lanka (Sri Lanka). Finally, Sita was recovered, and Rama was restored to his kingdom.


An epic is suppose to celebrate the feat of Heroes in times of war. It supposed to teach values. Values which matters a lot in keeping the principles of any religion in practice and intact among people.

Answer 5

I opine that the only significance of Ramayana is of human understanding. No religious,godly or any other ethnic or cultural significance. The story of ramayana is a pragmatic example of human relationships, moral values and cultural ethics-- all combined into one. I respect it because it gives us an oppurtunity to look into ourselves and think once that are we really following the footsteps of great people who had always told us to follow the path of truth and respect every living being on this planet.

Answer 6

It relates to how man should live and coduct his life as examples set by the incarnation of the Supreme 'Vishnu' as in the form of 'Rama' who was the son of a great king 'Dasaratha'. Every sentence in the Ramayana has very significant meaning that can be understood in many a good way.

Answer 7

In approximately the fifth century B.C., Valmiki, an Indian poet, composed the Ramayana, an epic still popular today. Basically, it is a story of a demon king, Ravanna or Tosakanth in the Thai version, who abducts Rama's wife Sita. Rama is an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu. Rama gathers the support of a monkey army in order to get Sita back. In composing the Indian epic, Valmiki combined two sets of legends. One set is the Northern legends, which are rooted in Aryan traditions. They deal primarily with stories of Rama, the prince of Ayudhya. The second set is the Southern legends, which were popular among the Dravidians. These stories are of demons who possess many supernatural powers (Desai 1969, P-130-131). Evidently, Valmiki did not incorporate all of the tales of Rama and the demons into his version of the Ramayana, Other writers incorporated other sets of tales and some even attempted to localize their versions. Valmiki's version, however, remains one of the most popular in India today.

It is not known for sure how the Thai people acquired the Ramayana epic. Indian influence, namely religious and political ideas, began to trickle into Southeast Asia during the early centuries after the death of Christ. Thailand was not the only country to which the epic appealed; many countries in Southeast Asia adopted the tale; especially those on the mainland. Non-Valmiki versions of the Ramayana also spread outside of India. The Thai version, called the "Ramakian," appears to be a combination of several versions. Like some of the southern Indian versions, the demon king Tosakanth does not appear totally bad in the Thai version. His emotions are genuine even if they cause him to do bad things (he is very much in love with Sita, Rama's wife). The Thai people can sympathize with this (Desai,1969, P.129). The Ramakian also resembles versions which are prevalent in Indonesia and Malaysia (Bridhyakorn, and Yupho 1962, P.5 and Desai 1969, p.165).

Despite its origin, the Ramakian is very Thai in character; the Thai people have changed the story to suit their taste. Since Rama is an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu, the Ramayana is viewed as a sacred story among Hindus. The Thai people, who are Buddhists, have stripped the story of its religious elements. The closest it comes to having religious significance lies in the fact that Rama is viewed as Buddha in a previous life. Primarily though, he is a Thai prince following all Thai mannerisms.

As with Indian versions, there exist several versions of the Ramakian. One of the most popular ones was that written by Rama I of the Chakri dynasty during the eighteenth century (Cadiz 1975, P.45). Another version was written by his son, Rama II, and was meant exclusively for the Khon drama (Anuman Rajadhon 1968, P.56). Versions of the Ramakian are also used for other purposes. Shadow plays and other classical dances draw on material from the Ramakian. Temple paintings are filled with scenes from the epic. The Ramakian is so popular that people are named after characters in the story (Velder 1968, P.39)

Why would an Indian epic, religious in nature, and a dance drama based on this epic become so popular in a country with Buddhist beliefs? The answer to this question may be sought in part by looking into the origins of Khon. The traditional date established for the beginning of Thai classical dance is 1431. This is the time when the Thai captured Angkor, the Cambodian capital, and kidnapped the Khmer royal dance troupe (Brandon 1967, p.63). However, records from prior periods in history were lost during the sack of the Thai capital in 1767 so it is possible that dance forms existed before this date. Khon is known to have existed in the Bangkok period, beginning in the eighteenth century, and was most likely prevalent before this time. What may be said with confidence is that both Khon and Nang Yai, a type of puppet play based on the Ramakien and believed to be the forerunner of Khon, existed during a period in history when kings all over Southeast Asia were intentionally adopting Indian ideas on how to run a government. Indian religious ideas were especially popular because the kings could then equate themselves with the gods and thus legitimize their rule. The Ramayana was popular because the kings could equate themselves with Rama, a prince who was an incarnation of a god. Performances of Khon and Nang Yai were, therefore, visual representations of this fact and thus served as continual reminders to the king's subjects that he was someone to be respected. The fact that the Thai people altered the story to become more Thai in character emphasized the Thai king's association with the gods even more.

Answer 8

ekapatni virathan and pathivruthas are strong and will end up with what they want to be and succeed in defeating the evils. rama has become the role model for ideal purusha and grahastha

Answer 9

IT SHOWS THE PATH TRUTH. MAN SHOULD NOT MISUSE HIS POWERS. IT ALSO TEACHES US TO OBEY YOUR PARENTS AND TEACHERS. IT ALSO TEACHES US THE LESSON OF FRIENDS. IT ALSO TEACHES US TO RESPECT OUR ELDER BROTHERS.