Ramakien

The Ramakien (Thai: รามเกียรติ์, RTGS: Rammakian, pronounced [rāːm.mā.kīa̯n]; literally "Glory of Rama"; sometimes also spelled Ramakian) is Thailand's national epic,[1] derived from the Buddhist Dasharatha Jataka[2]. "King Rama VI was the person who shed the light first on the Ramayana studies in Thailand, by tracing the sources of the Ramakien, comparing with the Sanskrit Valmiki Ramayana. He found that Ramakien was influenced by three sources: the Valmiki's Ramayana, the Vishnu Purana, and Hamuman Nataka."[3] , in addition to its core story based on Buddhist Dasharatha Jataka.A number of versions of the epic were lost in the destruction of Ayutthaya in 1767. Three versions currently exist, one of which was prepared in 1797 under the supervision of (and partly written by) King Rama I. His son, Rama II, rewrote some parts of his father's version for khon drama. The work has had an important influence on Thai literature, art and drama (both the khon and nang dramas being derived from it).

Hanuman on his chariot, a scene from the Ramakien in Wat Phra Kaew, Bangkok.
Part of the mural in the Temple of the Emerald Buddha

While the main story is similar to that of the Ramayana, differences in some tales still prevail, many other aspects were transposed into a Thai context, such as the clothes, weapons, topography, and elements of nature, which are described as being Thai in style.

A painted representation of the Ramakien is displayed at Bangkok's Wat Phra Kaew, and many of the statues there depict characters from it.

Background

The Pali Canon, holy revered text of Buddhists is believed by many archaeologists and historians to be a collection of stories based on past life of Buddha, as Rama-Pandita, the King of Ayodhya who lived in 7th century BCE, concentrating on the work of the gods in the lives of men, and was first written down, as legend states, by Theravadan Buddhist monks in the 3rd century BCE[4] Nevertheless, the Ramayana came to Southeast Asia by means of Indian traders and scholars who traded with the Khmer kingdoms (such as Funan and Angkor) and Srivijaya, with whom the Indians shared close economic and cultural ties.

In the late first millennium, the epic was adopted by the Thai people. Ramakien (written as Ramkerti, รามเกียรติ์ but read as Ramakien) was adopted from older Khmer sources, hence the similarity to the Khmer title Reamker (Ramakerti).[5] The oldest recordings of the early Sukhothai kingdom, dating from the 13th century, include stories from the Ramayana legends. The history of the legends was told in the shade theater (Thai: หนัง, Nang), a shadow-puppet show in a style adopted from Indonesia, in which the characters were portrayed by leather dolls manipulated to cast shadows on a nearby screen while the spectators watched from the other side.

The Thai version of the legends were first written down in the 18th century, during the Ayutthaya kingdom, following the demise of the Sukhothai government. Most editions, however, were lost when the city of Ayutthaya was destroyed by armies from Burma (modern Myanmar) in the year 1767.

The version recognized today was compiled in the Kingdom of Siam under the supervision of King Rama I (1726–1809), the founder of the Chakri dynasty, which still maintains the throne of Thailand. Between the years of 1799 and 1807, Rama I supervised the writing of the well-known edition and even wrote parts of it. It was also under the reign of Rama I that construction began on the Thai Grand Palace in Bangkok, which includes the grounds of the Wat Phra Kaew, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. The walls of the Wat Pra Kaew are lavishly decorated with paintings representing stories from the Ramakien.

Rama II (1766–1824) further adapted his father's edition of the Ramakien for the khon drama, a form of theater performed by non-speaking Thai dancers with elaborate costumes and masks. Narrations from the Ramakien were read by a chorus to one side of the stage. This version differs slightly from the one compiled by Rama I, giving an expanded role to Hanuman, the god-king of the apes, and adding a happy ending.

Since its introduction to the Thai people, the Ramakien has become a firm component of the culture. The Ramakien of Rama I is considered one of the masterpieces of Thai literature. It is still read, and is taught in the country's schools.

In 1989, Satyavrat Shastri translated the Ramakien into a Sanskrit epic poem (mahakavya) named Ramakirtimahakavyam, in 25 sargas (cantos) and about 1200 stanzas in 14 metres. This work won eleven national and international awards.[6]

Content

The tales of the Ramakien are similar to those of the Ramayana, though transferred to the topography and culture of Ayutthaya, where the Avatar of Pra Narai (the Thai incarnation of Vishnu, who's also known as Narayan) is reborn as Pra Ram.

Main figures

Gods

Human

Allies of Phra Ram

Enemies of Phra Ram
  • Thotsakan (from dashakantha) – King of the Demons of Lanka and strongest of Phra Ram's adversaries. Thotsakan has ten faces and twenty arms, and possesses a myriad of weapons.
  • Intharachit – A son of Thotsakan. Phra Ram's second most powerful adversaries. Intharachit uses his bow more than any other weapon. He once fired arrows (Nagabat Arrows) which turned into Nagas (or snakes) in mid-air and rained down on Phra Ram's army. He once had a blessing from the Phra Isuan that he shall not die on land but in the air, and if his severed head were to touch the ground, it will bring down great destruction.
  • Kumphakan – brother of Thotsakan and commander of demonic forces
  • Maiyarap – King of the Underworld, embodied as a donkey
  • Khon, Thut and Trisian – younger brothers of Thotsakan, and the first three to be killed by Phra Ram, in that order.

See also

References
  1. แถลงข่าวประกาศยกย่องบทละครเรื่องรามเกียรติ์ พระราชนิพนธ์ของรัชกาลที่ ๑ เป็น “วรรณคดีแห่งชาติ”
  2. Richman, Paul. "Many Ramayanas: The Diversity of a Narrative Tradition in South Asia".
  3. Lipi Ghosh, 2017, India-Thailand Cultural Interactions: Glimpses from the Past to Present, Springer Publishing, pp. 157
  4. "The Jataka Tales".
  5. "The Ramayana in Southeast Asia: (2) Thailand and Laos – Asian and African studies blog". blogs.bl.uk. Retrieved 10 September 2019.
  6. Sanskrit’s first Jnanpith winner is a 'poet by instinct'

Further reading
  • Thai Ramayana (abridged) as written by King Rama I, ISBN 974-7390-18-3
  • The story of Ramakian – From the Mural Paintings along the Galleries of the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, ISBN 974-7588-35-8
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