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Re: Another question re: Siitaa-Maata

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Ramanbil • November 12, 1998 


Dear Susarla:

The story of Ramayanam as depicted by Sage Valmiki is the original and
authentic one. The events portrayed therein have stirred up the imagination of
poets and writers ever since and all over India and even abroad. 

Each has given a twist here or a twist there, as it suited their imagination
and pet predilections. In fact, there was an actor-producer--in Tamilnadu, by
name Mr.R.S.Manohar who specialized and enacted dramas depicting even
villainous characters in our epics in glorious light based on one or the other
of these Ramayanas. The incident mentioned by you was the theme of one of his
dramas, I have seen years ago.

We have today at least 20 such popularly known Ramayanas like for example
Ananda Ramayanam, Adbutha Ramayanam, Agnivesya Ramayanam to mention a few and
not to leave out Rama Charita Manas of Tulsidas and Kamba Ramayanam. In the
last mentioned, Poet Kamban has depicted Rama as God   because he was not
comfortable with the idea  of considering Rama as a mere human as depicted by
Valmiki,

For various reasons, our Acharyas have held Valmiki Ramayanam as the only
authentic account of the epic. While we can read and enjoy the poetic
excellence and imagination of all the others, it is Srimad Valmiki Ramayanam
that is considered the correct version.

Dasoham
Anbil Ramaswamy