Iconography of Rama Myth

The image of Rama, according to the Visnudharmottara, should be adorned with all the royal marks of a king. His brothers Lakshamana, Bharata and Satrughna are also to be carved in the same manner. In the Agni Purana Rama is described as holding the bow, the arrow, the sword and the conc. It is rather surprising that we do not meet with such cutt images of Rama, described above, in the early centuries of the Christian era, but Ramayana had such a great impact on the people that various episodes from the life of Rama are profusely carved ont he walls of the early temples. So far, no shrine dedicated to Rama has come to light before the mediaeval period. Though no cult image of Rama has come to light before that period, it will be interesting to descrie here some of the panels on the outer walls of temples, depicting the Ramayana scenes. The transformation of Ahalya : Rama transformed Ahalya into a woman, who was cursed but her husband to turn into a stone in the forest till Rama would come and redeem her. A panel on the plinth of the Dasavatara temple at Deogarh represents this episode. The background of the panel is covered with trees and levaees indicating a forest scene. On the left of the panel is a figure with matted hair having a quiver behind his

412 shoulders and a bow in his left hand. He is shown to be seated on a stone slab by the side of which appears a felmle figure worshipping him. She must be Ahalya who was transformed to stone by her husband. lakshmana with a bow in his hand is standing behind Rama. The bearded figure to the right is the sage Visvamitra. The same scene is also carved on the wall of the Patthara Chati temple at Nalanda. On the fourth panel of the east face is a two armed standing male figure, apparently Rama, holding an arrow in the right hand and a bow in the left hand. A kneeling female with folded hands is seated to the right of Rama. A tree and little foliage in the background indicate it be a forest scene. A panel of the stone temple at a Nalanda depicts Rama and Sita in Pancavati. A male and a female figure are seated side by side as if covering with each other. The male figure wearing a Channavira is holding a bow under his left arm. Rama, Lakshmana and Sita had visited the hermitage of Atri and his wife Anasuya, on their way to the forest. One of the panels illustrating the Ramayana scenes on the Dasavatara temple at Deogarh, represents three male and two female figures in the grove. Two men are sitting on stone slabs and the third one Lakshmana is standing between them armed with a bow. The figure ont he right holds the manuscript in his hand and the other one is in the vyakhyana-mudra, indicating him to be a sage. One of the

413 female figures is seated on the floor on a mat and is being blessed by another female figure, representing Anasuya blessing Sita. Surpanakha, the sister of Ravana, was enamoured by Rama and Lakshmana when she saw them in the forest. Hence she went there and tried to lure them away but could not succeed. Thinking that Sita is the cause of her failure, she tried to harass her and consequently Lakshmana got so angry that he cut her nose. This popular incident is also depicted ont he wall of the Dasavatara temple. Rama helped Sugriva, the ape-king, to regain his power which was forcibly taken away by his own brother Vali. Lakshmana garlanded him for his victory. A panel on the Dasavatara temple illustrates this. Lakshmana is holding a garland in his hand intended for the moneky chief Sugriva who is represented by his side, with the face of an ape on a human body. A mutilated terracotta in the Patna Museum depict Rama and Lakshmana with monkeys, in search of Sita. The human figure wearing a crown is Vibhisana whereas the monkey with a crown is Hanuman. There are few other fragrenary reliefs illustrating the Ramayana scenes. The last relief represents Hanuman bringing the mountain on which grows the life-giving drug for Lakshmana who had fainted due to many injuries on his body.

, 414 Two images of Rama are also to be found in the Khajuraho group of temples. On the left, outside the parsvanatha temple is an image of Rama holding the bow and the arrow. Another image at the same place shows Rama and Sita in alingana-mudra. the four-handed Rama holds in his upper two hands the bow and the arrow, with his lower hand he blesses Hanuman seated at his right foot and with the upper left hand he embraces his consort. Sita embraces Rama with her right hand and holds a lotus in her left. In a niche on the wall of Amba Mata temple at Osian, datable to the 11 th century A.D. there is a standing image of Rama and Sita. It is completely like the Lakshmi-Narayana images. Rama holds the four emblems of Visnu and with one arm he embraces Sita. The only identifying mark is the figure of Hanuman standing to the right of Rama. He has the face of a monkey on a human body. It will be interesting here to refer to some of the dhyanas of Rama in brief. Rama is sometimes described as being honoured by several sages. In the Ramarcana Candrika, Rama is described in the palace at Ayodhya. He is seated on the Pushpaka throne, with Sita and Lakshmana to his left. He is adored by sage and the grahas. The same manuscript prescribes a form of Rama to be meditated upon by those desirous of moksa. He is to be invoked as in varasana near the river Sarayu. One of his hands should be in

415 the jnana-mudra and the other should be placed on his thigh. He is to be accompanied by Sita and Lakshman. According to the Silparatna, Rama is to be accompanied by Sita only. Rama seated in the virasana shows the jnana-mudra with one of his hands and the other rests on his lap. By his side is Sita with a lotus in her hand. Rama and Lakshmana in the forest are described in the Padma Purana. It says: "Rama proceeded to the other forest after tying his hair in a jata with a thread of his yajnopavita, wearing valkala garments besmearing his body with ashes, wearing a rudraksamala and is follwed by Lakshmana. Generally Rama is accompanied by Lakshmana and Sita but the Purana Karma describes him accompanied by his father: "Rama having broad and tender eyes like lotus is accompanied on the right side by Dasaratha anxiously looking at his son, a little behind him stands Lakshmana holding an umbrella. There appear Bharata and Satrughna and in front stands Hanuman soliciting the grace of Rama. Rama in the reclining position is also sometimes worshipped. According to the Atri Samhita, Rama is reclining his head in the lap of Sita and Lakshmana should be shown to be shampooing his feet. Most of the dhyanas referred to above are much later in date yi

416 but they are cited just to bring to the fore the nubmer of varieties of Rama images that evolved in that period. The Ramayana seems to have become popular in the Gupta period as we find it sometimes illustrated in stone on the walls of the early temples. It is surprising that very few Ramayana scenes have come to light from the western India till the mediaeval period, and even those that are found are negligible. The Ramayana had a deep impact and it spread even outside India, in Thailand and Cambodia. But still the Rama worship, forming its own separate and distinctive cult, does not seem to have existed before the mediaeval period, because as far as is known to us, the sculptural evidence to prove its existence is not abundant. The incarnation of Rama definitely remains a minor one till the late mediaeval period, and a very strong prevalence of the Rama cult is only a relatively later growth.