Friday, October 18, 2019

For Monday: The Last Chapters of Narayan's The Ramayana



Answer TWO of the following...

Q1: In The Ramayana, most things are not what they seem, particularly if they look too good to be true. Rama is warned that Ravana’s turncoat brother, Vibishana, is clearly an “asura,” an evil spirit who will bring him harm; therefore he must kill him and fulfill his duty as a hero (who came to earth, after all, to stop Ravana and all asuras). Why does Rama instead decide to spare him even at the risk of being betrayed later on? Does this go against his dharma as a warrior or his mission as a god?

Q2: Toward the end of his life, Ravana is warned “Sooner or later retribution comes. Do not be contemptuous of men or monkeys” (126). Why does he continue to fly in the face of dharma and pursue his “impure work”? If we read this entire story on a more allegorical/metaphorical level, what human impulse might Ravana represent for the book’s readers?

Q3: What do you make of the passage that describes Ravana’s death? How might this reflect Rama’s earlier encounter with Vali? How might this passage also help explain the concept of maya in Hindu thought?

Q4: Clearly the most controversial part of the book is Rama’s rejection of Sita after his long struggle to regain her. How do you read this passage in terms of Rama being not only a great hero, but the god Vishnu himself? Why demand this of a wronged woman? Does this passage relate to anything else we’ve read in the book concerning women? (related to this, how does Narayan seem to read it)? 

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