Customer Reviews

The Ramayana, As Told by Aubrey Menen

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This book is an English adaptation of the epic, Ramayana. This book does not give a full account of all the adventures and misadventures of Rama, but it is fairly entertaining nonetheless. There were parts of this book that I found downright hilarious.

If this will be your fist time studying Ramayana, this book is a good place to start. It is a quick read and very easy to follow. If you are looking for an English version of the Ramayana with a little more substance, I would suggest looking elsewhere.

My only major gripe against this book was the fact that it didn't even mention Hanuman, who is my favorite character in all of Southeast Asian Mythology. The book isn't entirely accurate if you hold it up against the original texts, but it gives the general idea of the story pretty well.

If you are looking for a version of Ramayana that reads more like Voltaire's Candide than it does the New York Telephone Directory (As some versions of Ramayana do) this is your book.

The original Ramayana, attributed to Valmiki, is an epic poem in Sanskrit with origins around 1,000 B.C., that was formalized during the 5th to 3rd century B.C.. It tells of the journeys of Prince Rama, exiled from his father's kingdom for fourteen years due to the machinations of one of the king's wives. He's accompanied by his loyal brother, Lakshmana, and his famously chaste wife, Sita, who is taken by the demon Ravana. After tracking them with the help of Hanuman, a Monkey King-like character, and besieging the city of Lanka, Rama wins back Sita and returns home to take the throne and usher in a period of just rule, though later additions to the story have him banishing Sita because of untrue gossip that she yielded her chastity to Ravana. The characters are all apparently avatars for the various qualities they possess--loyalty, chastity, etc., with Rama being an idealized version of son, husband, and eventually king. As such they serve Hinduism as moral exemplars.

The Indo-Irish author Aubrey Menen, on the other hand, retells the epic in a modern and accessible form that distills it all down to mostly just comedy, while getting rid of such supernatural effects as heroic monkeys and evil demons. The lesson he derives is that: "There are three things which are real: God, human folly, and laughter. Since the first two pass our comprehension, we must do what we can with the third." The result is a humanized and quite amusing novel, but one which has little remaining moral content.

Other reviewers have already pointed out that this is not a faithful rendering of the Ramayana. Yes, the title is misleading and inconsiderate. Readers who are new to the Ramayana and want a readable English version might consider William Buck's retelling. Menen's book is something of an extended insiders' joke, or a long, pointed commentary on many of the absurdities of Hindu traditions and customs. This is NOT a book for children or for people who are new to Hinduism. Menen is a satirist, that is to say, a social critic, and biting satire is what he delivers here. If you already know the story of the Ramayana, you may benefit greatly from Menen's barbed observations. I certainly did.

In this "retelling" of the Ramayana, one of the two most important epics of ancient India, Menen takes many liberties with the text -- he omits some episodes and adds others of his own making which he thinks reflects the "spirit" of Valmiki, the poem's author. In this I think he is successful and this is what makes this little prose version such a pleasure to read. But anyone who is interested in a more scholarly appraoch had better look elsewhere. A great introduction to Indian literature, especially for children. Roughly 270 pages.

Other reviewers have already pointed out that this is not a faithful rendering of the Ramayana. Yes, a different title could be less misleading and more considerate. Readers who are new to the Ramayana and want a readable English version might consider William Buck's retelling. Menen's book is something of an extended insiders' joke, or a long, pointed commentary on many of the absurdities of Hindu traditions and customs. This is NOT a book for children or for people who are new to Hinduism. Menen is a satirist, that is to say, a social critic, and biting satire is what he delivers here. If you already know the story of the Ramayana, you may benefit greatly from Menen's barbed observations. I certainly did.

If you are looking for the real Ramayana - look elsewhere. Menen has taken great liberties - cherry picking parts of the original Ramayana. This version does not in any way reflect the deeper message that is hidden within the Ramayana. Menen should have titled his work more appropriately to reflect this given that the Ramayana is one of the most important books for 1/6 of the world's population...!!!!

zero stars: good fire starter
After reading so many refferences to this book in my research this seemed like an important book to read for myself. Unfortunately no one told me there were at least two versions.

The author felt he was doing us a service by "rejecting" the "...whole sections of the work that the Brahmins have written into it, and inventing much they have destroyed:..." in other words a recent thrashing of the 2500 year old work, and editing it to death, taking out all the Brahmins inserts which apparently had all the curious stuff that so many Ancient mystery researchers refer to.
This is an absolutely gutted version of the Ramayana, and probaly needs to be scrapped entirely.

After reading so many refferences to this book in my research this seemed like an important book to read myself. Unfortunately no one told me there were at least two versions.

The author felt he was doing us a service by "rejecting" the "...whole sections of the work that the Brahmins have written into it, and inventing much they have destroyed:..." in other words a recent thrashing of the 2500 year old work, and editing it to death, taking out all the Brahmins inserts which apparently had all the curious stuff that so many Ancient mystery researchers refer to. Then adding his own fairytales to the old texts...how does anyone think they can do this? Is his version of the bible next?

This is an absolutely gutted version of the Ramayana, and probaly needs to be scrapped entirely as it is evidently just a recent reworking and editing of an ancient text. Note the tags I put on this one.