Ramayana: Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa Essays -- Valmiki, Rama, Lakshmana

One of the most striking relationships throughout the entire RÄ mÄ yaá ¹â€¡a is that between India's epic hero RÄ ma and his half-brother Laká ¹ £maá ¹â€¡a. What is interesting about this affair is Laká ¹ £maá ¹â€¡a's pure fidelity toward his brother and all his goals. While RÄ ma is the king on leave throughout most of the Hindu epic, Laká ¹ £maá ¹â€¡a acts more or less as his royal servant and bodyguard of his most prized possession, that being RÄ ma's wife, SÄ «tÄ . Interestingly enough, Laká ¹ £maá ¹â€¡a is very much an intelligent being himself, and one who revels in the longevity of his brother's interests and aims. This paper will deal with how these Laká ¹ £maá ¹â€¡a creates himself as the most loyal of companions within the first book of the RÄ mÄ yaá ¹â€¡a. In the BÄ la KÄ Ã¡ ¹â€¡Ã¡ ¸ a, VÄ lmÄ «ki sets forth the ideal relationship between the brothers, which only grows stronger and allows the story to finish at the termination of t he Uttara KÄ Ã¡ ¹â€¡Ã¡ ¸ a. In order to understand Laká ¹ £maá ¹â€¡a, we have to understand that he, like RÄ ma, is an avatar of Vishnu, and again, like RÄ ma, is sent forth into the forest with the sage ViÅ›vÄ mitra in order to conquer the demons that inhabit the land. Therefore, Laká ¹ £maá ¹â€¡a is a royal and legitimate heir to the throne, although he is the youngest of all of the King of AyodhyÄ 's sons. Seemingly, his most striking characteristic is that of not only loyalty to RÄ ma, but to dhà ¡rma as well. Dhà ¡rma, aside from being the "right course of conduct in every dilemma," is a social contract for all human beings to follow. With the rise of the demon RÄ vaá ¹â€¡a and his dispensation from BrahmÄ  of a boon of invincibility, RÄ ma and Laká ¹ £maá ¹â€¡a vow to help save the kingdom and the world from this evildoer and henceforth, to promote and uphold dhà ¡rma. This, although truly heroic indeed, is le... ..." Works Cited Encyclopà ¦dia Britannica Online, s.v. "Dharma-shastra," http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/160730/Dharma-shastra (accessed May 3, 2011). V. Raghavan, The Two Brothers, Rama and Lakshmana, (Madras: Raghavan, 1976), 5. V. Raghavan, The Two Brothers, Rama and Lakshmana, (Madras: Raghavan, 1976), 5. G.S. Ghurye, The Legacy of the Ramayana, (Bombay: Popular Prakashan Private Ltd., 1979), 98. Swami Venkatesananda, THE CONCISE RÄ€MÄ€YAá ¹â€ A of VÄ lmÄ «ki, (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1988), 13. G.S. Ghurye, The Legacy of the Ramayana, (Bombay: Popular Prakashan Private Ltd., 1979), 98. V. Raghavan, The Two Brothers, Rama and Lakshmana, (Madras: Raghavan, 1976), 21. Merriam-Webster Dictionary, s.v. "adharma," http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adharma (accessed May 4, 2011).