Yes, Ram does raise his bow and kill Ravana. Many choose to interpret this as a licence to use violence against those whom they brand villains. Mythological tales must never be taken literally; they are symbolic, essentially containers of profound ideas. Ravana is killed not because he is evil or because he is Ram’s political opponent. In keeping with the dominant theme of Vaishnava literature, Ram kills Ravana only because, despite being highly educated and extremely capable, Ravana stubbornly refuses to tame the animal within him, the animal that craves power and seeks to dominate. While such behaviour is appropriate for animals, it is not acceptable in humans. For animals it is matsya nyaya, law of the jungle, but for humans it is adharma, unrighteous conduct.
Ram is maryada purushottam, one who always upholds dharma. Dharma is not about controlling people or striking down the enemy. It is about looking beyond self-preservation and self-propagation. It is about caring for others, about loving and giving, not taking. It is about understanding people, accommodating people, making people feel secure and giving them a supportive environment. Dharma is about sacrificing desire with discipline on the altar of duty, about refusing to submit to the seductive passions roused by adharma, about outgrowing the animal within us. Dharma is what can transform a man into a god.
According to the Adhyatma Ramayana, Ravana is our ego, that part of us that is constantly seeking external validation. Having submitted to adharma, our ego has abducted Sita, our mind. That is why we constantly seek to dominate the world around us and that is why we do not accept it for what it is.
We have to rescue Sita. We have to unleash the power of Hanuman, our intellect, cross the sea of life, overpower Ravana, burn his golden Lanka and reunite Sita with Ram, who awaits discovery within us.
This Ram cannot be fettered to a particular period or a particular place. He is unbound by time and space. He exists everywhere at all times. He is our soul within us, our true identity, animating us, watching us.
When this Ram is realized, the desire for political victory ebbs. One is filled with love, wisdom and compassion for all. Dharma reigns supreme and Ram Rajya is established both within and around us.
A Prayer to Ram
May Ram who is Raghu’s descendant
protect my head,
May Ram who is Dashratha’s son
protect my forehead,
May Ram who is Kaushalya’s son
protect my eyes,
May Ram who is Vishwamitra’s favourite
protect my ears,
May Ram who is the yagna’s saviour
protect my nose,
May Ram who loves Lakshman
protect my mouth,
May Ram who is a sea of knowledge
protect my tongue,
May Ram who Bharata salutes
protect my neck,
May Ram who holds divine weapons
protect my shoulders,
May Ram who broke Shiva’s bow
protect my arms,
May Ram who is Sita’s husband
protect my hands,
May Ram who conquered Parashuram
protect my heart,
May Ram who killed the Rakshasa Khara
protect my abdomen,
May Ram who is Jambavan’s refuge
protect my navel,
May Ram who is Sugriva’s defender
protect my waist,
May Ram who is Hanuman’s master
protect my hips,
May Ram who is the destroyer of the Rakshasas
protect my two thighs,
May Ram who built the bridge
protect my knees,
May Ram who killed the ten-faced demon
protect my shins,
May Ram who gave wealth to Vibhishana
protect my feet,
Thus may Ram protect my entire body
—From the Rama Raksha Stotram by Buddhakaushika
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First published by Penguin Books India 2008
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Text copyright © Devdutt Pattanaik 2008
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ISBN: 978-0-143-42460-4
This digital edition published in 2015.
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Devdutt Pattanaik, The Book of RAM
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