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Book Review
TAMIL
Epic in translation
C. L. RAMAKRISHNAN
THAILAND RAMAYANAM: Sri Venugopalan; Vikatan Publications, 757, Anna Salai, Chennai-600002. Rs. 50.
THIS WORK is a Tamil translation of the Ramkian by the king of Thailand, King Raman Adhipati I. The title itself seems to have been derived from “Rama aakhyana”, i.e. the narration of the life story of Rama. There are 10 chapters giving the story of the epic in parts. As in Valmiki Ramayana, Anjaneya has been given the pride of place here too. It is, however, in sharp contrast to the confirmed bachelor that he was in Valmiki’s epic. In this Thailand version, he is depicted as a much-married person. Many names that occur in the Valmiki Ramayana are also found here but with differences in spelling and pronunciation perhaps due to the influence of the local language. A number of Tamil words have also received similar treatment.
This is an interesting book with emphasis on Dharma in a couple of places. The influence of Sanskrit and Tamil literature on this work is very clear. While the epics in Sanskrit and Tamil narrating the episodes in Rama’s life lay stress on Dharma at every turn, this work mentions this virtue only in passing. This is the cardinal difference in these versions. There are many episodes different from the Indian traditional Ramayana where Rama is a role model for human behaviour and as such, this publication reads more like a novel.
Being a translation the author cannot make departures from the original written by the Thailand king, but has made it interesting by taking us to that land through descriptions of its environs.
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