Valmiki composes the Ramayana
Valmiki (Sanskrit: वाल्मीकि, vālmīki) (ca. 400 BC, northern India)[1] is celebrated as the poet harbinger in Sanskrit literature. He is the author of the epic, Ramayana, based on the attribution in the text of the epic itself[2]. He is revered as the Adi Kavi, which means First Poet, for he discovered the first śloka i.e. first verse, which set the base and defined the form to Sanskrit poetry. The Yoga Vasistha is also attributed to him.
There is also a religious movement based on Valmiki's teachings as presented in the Ramayana and the Yoga Vasistha called Valmikism.
At least by the 1st century AD, Valmiki's reputation as the father of Indian poetry seems to have been already legendary as Ashvagosha writes in the Buddhacarita,
- "The voice of Valmiki uttered poetry which the great seer Chyavana could not compose."
(Also, this verse seems to indicate a belief in some relation between Valmiki and Chyavana as the preceding and following verses recount similar instances of original geniuses whose achievements could not be made by their fathers or ancestors.)[3][4]
Ramayana
The Rāmāyaṇa, originally written by Valmiki, consists of 24,000 verses[5] in six cantos (some say seven i.e. including the Uttara Ramayana) (kāṇḍas). The Ramayana tells the story of a prince, Rama of Ayodhya, whose wife Sita is abducted by the demon (Rākshasa) king of Lanka, Rāvana. The Valmiki Ramayana is dated variously from 500 BC to 100 BC, or about co-eval with early versions of the Mahabhārata[6]. As with most traditional epics, since it has gone through a long process of interpolations and redactions it is impossible to date it accurately.
The first śloka
Valmiki was going to the river Ganga for his daily ablutions. A disciple by the name Bharadwaja was carrying his clothes. On the way, they came across the Tamasa Stream. Looking at the stream, Valmiki said to his disciple, "Look, how clear is this water, like the mind of a good man! I will bathe here today." When he was looking for a suitable place to step into the stream, he heard sweet chirping of birds. Looking up, he saw two birds flying together. Valmiki felt very pleased on seeing the happy bird couple. Suddenly, one of the birds fell down hit by an arrow; it was the male bird. Seeing the wounded one, its mate screamed in agony. Valmiki's heart melted at this pitiful sight. He looked around to find out who had shot the bird. He saw a hunter with a bow and arrows, nearby. The hunter had shot the bird for food. Valmiki became very angry. His lips opened and he uttered the following words:
/*ॐ माँ निषाद प्रतिष्ठा त्वमगमः शास्वती समः यत् क्रोच मिथुनादेवकमवधी काममोहितं*/
- mā niṣāda pratiṣṭhāṁ tvamagamaḥ śāśvatīḥ samāḥ
- yat krauñcamithunādekam avadhīḥ kāmamohitam[7]
- "Oh! Ill-fated Hunter, by which reason you have killed one male bird of the couple, when it is in its lustful passion,
- thereby you will get an ever-lasting reputation for ages to come..."[8]
This was the first śloka in Sanskrit literature. Later Valmiki composed the entire Ramayana with the blessings of Lord Brahma in the same meter that issued forth from him as a śloka. Thus this śloka is revered as the "first śloka" in Hindu literature. Valmiki is revered as the first poet, or Adi Kavi, and the Ramayana, the first kavya.
His first disciples to whom he taught the Ramayana were Kusha and Lava the sons of Rama.
See also
References
- ^ Julia Leslie, Authority and Meaning in Indian Religions: Hinduism and the Case of Valmiki, Ashgate (2003), p. 154. ISBN 0754634310
- ^ Vālmīki, Robert P. Goldman (1990). The Rāmāyaṇa of Vālmīki: An Epic of Ancient India. 1. Princeton University Press. pp. 14–15. ISBN 069101485X.
- ^ E. B. Cowell, tr., The Buddhacharita of Asvagosha, Book I, Verse 48. Clarendon Press (1894)
- ^ Ilapvuluri Panduranga Rao, Valmiki, Sahitya Akademi, India (1994) - Makers of Indian Literature - ISBN 8172016808
- ^ Rāmāyaṇa is composed of about 480,002 words, a quarter of the length of the full text of the Mahabharata or about four times the length of the Iliad.
- ^ Goldman, Robert P., The Ramayana of Valmiki: An Epic of Ancient India pp. 23
- ^ Sacred-Texts.com IAST encoded transliteration (modified from original source to accurately reflect sandhi rules)
- ^ ValmikiRamayana.net Translation
External links
| Persondata |
| NAME |
Valmiki |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES |
Valmik; Balmiki |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION |
poet and mythical author of Ramayana |
| DATE OF BIRTH |
ca. 400 B.C. |
| PLACE OF BIRTH |
India |
| DATE OF DEATH |
|
| PLACE OF DEATH |
|
