91桃色

The seventh and final book of the monumental 搁腻尘腻测补峁嘺 of V膩lm墨ki, the 鲍迟迟补谤补办腻峁囜笉补, brings the epic saga to a close with an account of the dramatic events of King R膩ma’s millennia-long reign. It opens with a colorful history of the demonic race of the 谤腻办峁�a蝉补蝉 and the violent career of R膩ma鈥檚 villainous foe R膩va峁嘺, and later recounts R膩ma鈥檚 grateful discharge of his allies in the great war at Lank膩 as well as his romantic reunion with his wife S墨t膩. But dark clouds gather as R膩ma, confronted by scandal over S墨t膩鈥檚 time in captivity under the lustful R膩va峁嘺, makes the agonizing decision to banish his beloved wife, now pregnant. As R膩ma continues as king, marvelous tales and events unfurl, illustrating the benefits of righteous rule and the perils that await monarchs who fail to address the needs of their subjects.

The 鲍迟迟补谤补办腻峁囜笉补 has long served as a point of social and religious controversy largely for its accounts of the banishment of S墨t膩, as well as of R膩ma鈥檚 killing of a low-caste ascetic. The translators鈥� introduction provides a full discussion of these issues and the complex reception history of the 鲍迟迟补谤补办腻峁囜笉补. This translation of the critical edition also includes exhaustive notes and a comprehensive bibliography.

Awards and Recognition

• Winner of the A.K. Ramanujan Book Prize for Translation, Association for Asian Studies
• Winner of the 2017 World Sanskrit Award, Indian Council for Cultural Relations