Adhyatma Ramayana (Devanāgarī: अध्यात्म रामायण,IAST:Adhyātma Rāmāyaṇa,lit. 'Spiritual Ramayana') is a 13th- to 15th-centurySanskrit text that allegorically interprets the story of Hindu epicRamayana in theAdvaita Vedanta framework.[1][2][3] It is embedded in the latter portion ofBrahmānda Purana, and the author is considered to beVyasa.[4] The Hindu tradition also attributes the text to the Bhakti movement saintRamananda.[5]
The text consists of 7 books, 65 chapters or 4,500 verses in the form of a dialogue betweenShiva andParvati.[6][1] Adhyatma Ramayana contains the ideal characteristics ofRama and the precepts related to devotion, knowledge, dispassion, adoration and good conduct. Rama is presented as the supreme Brahman in the text, while the struggles of Sita and him are re-interpreted in an abstract spiritual form.[2] The allegory inspired several later versions of the Ramayana story in languages likeAwadhi (Ramcharitmanas byTulsidas),Oriya,Bengali andMalayalam version byThunchaththu Ezhuthachan.[7][3]
The wordAdhyatma (Sanskrit: अध्यात्म) means "transcendental, relating toAtman (self, soul)".[8]
Adhyatma Ramayana represents the story ofRama in a spiritual context. The text constitutes over 35% of the chapters ofBrahmanda Purana, often circulated as an independent text in theVaishnavism tradition,[9] and is anAdvaita Vedanta treatise of over 65 chapters and 4,500 verses.[5][10][11]
The text represents Rama as theBrahman (metaphysical reality), mapping allsaguna (attributes) of Rama to thenirguna nature (ultimate unchanging attributeless virtues and ideals).[11] Adhyatma Ramayana raises every mundane activity of Rama to a spiritual or transcendent level, the story into symbolism, thus instructing the seeker to view his or her own life through the symbolic vision for his soul, where the external life is but a metaphor for the eternal journey of the soul in Advaita terminology.[11]
The book is aimed to be used as a guide and a ready source of instruction for a spiritual seeker, as it presents the Ramayana as a divine allegory. The text influenced the popularRamcharitmanas byTulsidas.[9][11]
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The Adhyatma Ramayana is organized into seven Kandas, or chapters:
1. Bala Kanda – This chapter begins with the description of Brahmaswarup, the cosmic and celestial appearance of Lord Rama as anavatar ofVishnu, who descended to earth as a human being to removerakshasas(demons) such asRavana. It includes Rama's childhood and the story ofAhilya's deliverance by Rama.
2. Ayodhya Kanda – Life in Ayodhya, including Rama's exile, the death of his fatherDasarath, etc.
3. Aranya Kanda – The forest (Aranya) chapter, which includes the kidnapping ofSita by Ravana.
4. Kishkindha Kanda – the episode ofKishkindha. This chapter describes the killing ofBali, and the initiation of the active search for Sita.
5. Sundar Kanda – detailsHanuman's arrival and activities inLanka.
6. Lanka Kanda – corresponding to the Yuddha Kanda of theValmiki Ramayana. It contains details of the battles between Rama's armies and Ravana, the killing of Ravana, and the coronation of Rama upon his return to Ayodhya from Lanka.
7. Uttara Kanda – Epilogue. It includes the banishment of Sita, the birth ofLava andKusha – the sons of Rama and Sita – and Rama's departure from the earth toVaikuntha, the abode of Lord Vishnu. The fifth adhyaya (sub-chapter) of the Uttar Kanda describes a conversation between Lord Rama and his brotherLakshmana, often referred to as the Rama Gita (the song of Rama). It is essentially an Advaitic philosophical work.[12]
' Ramayana kathaganam- adyatma ramayana visishtata ' by M.S.Rani Prameela Devi
'saraswata vyasamulu ' by Nori Narasimha sastri
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