Indian traditions, Nivedita and Coomaraswamy
Rama
Rama is born to Kaushalya as one of Dasharatha’s four sons, each sharing the self of Vishnu. His birth answers the gods’ need for a human opponent to Ravana, whose granted immunity leaves him vulnerable to men. When Kaikeyi demands his exile, Rama accepts fourteen years in the forest so that his father’s promises remain intact. He leaves the expected succession rather than make the kingdom a reason to break the pledged word.
Also known as Rāma · Ramachandra
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In the sources
Principal account
TraditionalRama is born to Kaushalya as one of Dasharatha’s four sons, each sharing the self of Vishnu. His birth answers the gods’ need for a human opponent to Ravana, whose granted immunity leaves him vulnerable to men.
Further detail
TraditionalWhen Kaikeyi demands his exile, Rama accepts fourteen years in the forest so that his father’s promises remain intact. He leaves the expected succession rather than make the kingdom a reason to break the pledged word.
Context & interpretation
This entry follows the Ramayana retelling in the 1914 collection. Rama’s divine birth and the exile are traditional narrative accounts. The source’s particular arrangement of the story does not exhaust the many devotional and regional Ramayana traditions.
Original passages
Source 1
Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists
sharing the self of Vishnu from Kaushalya, RamaOpen this page in the book
Passage & edition details
Location recorded at citation review: Nivedita and Coomaraswamy, Myths of the Hindus & Buddhists (1914), active reader leaf 48
Exact passage checked against the active edition text and original-leaf mapping; whitespace and scan line breaks normalised.
- Edition
- IMJ-0109-E001
- Reader page
- IMJ-0109-E001-P0048
- Original scan leaf
- 48
- Recorded leaf number
- 48
- Current Reader position
- 39
- Reader verification
- Source-preserving update confirmed
Source 2
Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists
thy order is sufficientOpen this page in the book
Passage & edition details
Location recorded at citation review: Nivedita and Coomaraswamy, Myths of the Hindus & Buddhists (1914), active reader leaf 63
Exact passage checked against the active edition text and original-leaf mapping; whitespace and scan line breaks normalised.
- Edition
- IMJ-0109-E001
- Reader page
- IMJ-0109-E001-P0063
- Original scan leaf
- 63
- Recorded leaf number
- 63
- Current Reader position
- 54
- Reader verification
- Source-preserving update confirmed
Illustrations
Continue exploring
Garuda
Vishnu’s great bird mount and the feared opponent of serpents.
Shared source pageVishnu
The divine figure whose descent into human life makes the defeat of Ravana possible.
Shared source pageRavana
The ruler of Lanka whose protection against divine foes leaves a human vulnerability.
Shared illustrationShiva’s Bow
The immense inherited bow whose breaking establishes Rama’s marriage to Sita.