The Ramayana: A Modern Retelling of the Great Indian Epic

This is a beautifully written book. I urge potential readers NOT to be put off by strange names and the foreign vocabulary-think of how many odd names (certainly not in common use in contemporary culture) the fans of The Lord of the Rings had to absorb for instance. What saved that work, is precisely what saves this to my way of thinking-the writing is simple and compelling, drawing the reader into the plot of the story, and carrying him through to the end, despite the barriers presented by the names. While Tolkien, drawing on his extensive knowledge of languages, fashioned the beautiful names in his books, Menon has had to shoulder the burden of history and a culture at some remove from the English language, and accept the names as a given. Despite this, he succeeds admirably. It is a shame to let biases against strange sounding names act as a barrier to an appreciation of this timeless epic. As a fan of Tolkien-having read The Lord of the Rings many many times, I can honestly say that fans of fantasy will find this a very enjoyable read indeed. It is of course a timeless epic from an ancient and rich civilization that still has the power to enchant and move the reader-its great age alone should be enough show that it is one of the great human epics. And here Menon's rendering is the best that I have encountered-I have read several others in English. The scenes are told very vividly, and I will be forever grateful to Menon for rekindling my imagination! In a work like this, the original, which is plainly very old, can be very difficult to transcribe for a modern audience, and other attempts have tried to circumvent this difficulty by veering into caricature, or have tried to adopt a formal and stilted prose. This is a remarkable book in the sense that strikes just the right balance-the author must have thought through these issues very carefully indeed. At any rate, he has succeeded admirably-at least for me! I can feel the events unfold in a very real way-the careful, precise, and simple use of language carries my thoughts into the heart of the events that unfold. (Isn't informality and precision the hallmark of fine writing?). As for complaints about digressions from the main plot, I find these quibbles frankly absurd. Indeed a great virtue of Menon's work is an attempt flesh the whole epic out accurately and carefully. To me, the side plots serve to situate the main events in a context that enables the reader to appreciate the beauty of this epic more fully. Those who find them boring are missing the more delicate nuances of this ancient classic. I find myself returning to the book often. I also read his two volume work on the Mahabharata. These books have rekindled in me an interest in the cultural history of the land of my birth! I would not have thought this possible before I encountered Menon's work. I have to say that I can never adequately thank him for this.

Gods, Demons and Heroes, locked in titanic battle in the mythical days of yore, and performing great feats of strength and/or self sacrifice ... what's not to love about that ? The Ramayana is one of the great literary epics of Ancient India, retold in this version in full-length and easy-to-read English prose form. It's the story of the life and trials of Rama, a mortal incarnation (avatar) of the great Hindu God, Vishnu. However, it's more than just a simple mythological adventure story ... it's also a morality play. Rama is an archetypal example of a perfect man, dutiful son and pious husband; and likewise his wife Sita is an archetype of the perfect woman/wife. Together they are sent into exile by an act of betrayal, and by fate, and face a series of challenges that mercilessly test their quality and character ... encountering, in no particular order, wandering holymen/beggars, murderous rakshasas, diabolical demons, Gods, Devas, and creatures and spirits of the forest. The thing that a lot of English & Western readers might otherwise overlook is that this epic is a revered part of Hindu literature, in much the same way that the adventures and trials of Jesus of Nazareth are told in the New Testament of the Bible. The book is very enjoyable, and can be read on a number of different levels ... as both a simple mythological fantasy, as well as literary classic that indirectly underlies one of the world's major religions. Some of the deeds and actions by the characters in the story might seem incomprehensible to some of us westerners, but that's just par for the course in grasping the deep seated psychological & religious differences between different cultures, with differing role models. The author, thoughtfully, included a helpful appendix which defines some of the hindi words that appear in the story (ex: "moksha" loosely translates as "embodied enlightenment"), but it's by no means complete ... but it's enough for a western reader to get by without too much trouble. In any case, it's a very enjoyable tale.

Recently finished this book for the first time. It is by far the greatest story I’ve ever read. I plan on reading it again in the future. I’m also buying the Mahabharata to continue reading into the fantastic journey that is Hinduism.

After reading Ramesh Menons translation of the Mahabharata and being in complete awe i thought I'd give this a go. Once again I was not disappointed. While the story isn't as strong as the Mahabharata its still an excellent story, that once again has been fantastically retold. No doubt parts of the story have been worked around so it will make sense to a foreign audience but once more mr Ramesh Menon is a master at this. Easy to read full of action romance plot twits and a healthy dose of the surreal makes for a fantastic read.

Modern, Poetical, easy read for the western mind .Easy and delightful way to embrace a classic and historical indua tale of good over evil- light and darkness and live and service!

I love this book, I already have a copy of this back in India. However, I wanted to read it again and add it to my collection here in NL, so bought the book. But as you can see, the printing quality is not at all upto standards. Almost all the pages have black lines near the edges, the pages are semi transparent causing the next pages words to be slightly visible, there are some parts when the printed words are smudged. Did not expect this bad quality of printing for a book costing almost 20€.

どこからみても新品同然のコンディションで 商品をお届けいただきました。 ２０，０００前のインドの大叙事詩、ラーマヤーナはいろいろな 訳、バージョンがある中、 本作は、古典過ぎる言い回しでなく、読みやすく Valmiki の原作に忠実で ラーマ神のリーラ、ヴェーダの神話の世界に 浸りたい方に おススメです。

This is a truly excellent retelling of this ancient epic tale. It skips over the hours-long tangents of the original and stays 'on topic' in a way that we expect in this day and age, but at the same time, it doesn't lose the spirituality and humanity of the tale. I've compared this to some other modern retellings, and this is the best I can find. The important details, the spiritual lessons, the reflections on dharma, are all present in this book. If you want to read the Ramayana, I highly recommend this version.