[In the following essay, Kannampilly discusses the widespread influence of the Ramayana in South East Asia.]

For over 14 centuries now, the Ramayana has continued to be a living force among the people of South East Asia, influencing their hearts and thoughts, inspiring their artistic creations and forming the mainspring of their cultural life. To them the hero and heroine of the Ramayana have always been models of chivalry, nobility and faithfulness, characters of great spiritual beauty.

The story of the Prince of Ayodhya was known throughout the South East Asian region. In Burma perhaps the first version was the Rama Thagyin composed in 1775 by U Aung Phyo. A decade or so afterwards the story was dramatised, and starting from then, it has continued to be popular on the dance stage in Burma. The story was perhaps introduced into Burma after the Burmese conquest of Thailand, where the Ramayana was already popular. There is, however, some reason to believe that the story was known much earlier than U Aung Phyo's time, since there was the story of a Burmese King in the 12th Century who had declared himself to be a descendant of Rama. There are at least eight known different Burmese versions of the Ramayana, written between the 18th and the 20th Centuries.

The influence of the Ramayana in Thailand has always been strong. The very fact that all the Kings of the Chakri dynasty have continued to assume the name of Rama shows how the hero of the Ramayana has been held in the highest esteem as the repository of all Kingly virtues. The earliest written version, the Ramakien, was the work of King Rama I. His successor, Rama II, prepared a stage version, while Rama VI, who ruled from 1910 till 1925, wrote a version of the Ramayana based on the Valmiki text.

It is believed that there were earlier Thai versions than the Ramakien which were all lost when the old Thai capital of Ayuthia was sacked by the Burmese in 1767. The very name of the old capital—Ayuthia—gives strength to this belief.

The Ramayana provides material for most of the classical dances of Thailand, particularly the masked play known as “Khon” and the leather puppet plays. The temple of the Emerald Buddha in Bangkok is decorated with murals depicting scenes from the story of the Ramayana.

In Laos, Ramayana episodes are carved on the Vat Mai or “New Pagoda” while in another pagoda the complete story is painted in a series of beautiful frescoes. Students of the Laotian Natyasala include the story of the Ramayana in their dance repertoire. Interestingly enough, different parts of Laos have different versions of the story of Rama—a clear evidence of the great popularity that the story enjoys among the Laotian people. At Royal weddings even in recent times the Ramayana used to be danced in full regalia at the Laotian Royal Court.

Cambodian epigraphic texts of the early seventh century have references to the Ramayana. In those majestic monuments, the Ba Phuon built in the 11th Century and the Angkor Wat built by Suryavarman II in the 12th Century and in that jewel of a temple that is Bantey Srei dating back to 967 A. D., episodes from the Ramayana are shown in beautiful reliefs. In Cambodia also, classical dances are based on themes from the Ramayana.

In Malaysia the Ramayana had become the basic source for shadow plays from the fifteenth century when the Hikayat Seri Rama was composed. The shadow plays have been popular as in Indonesia, not merely for their entertainment value but also for their spiritual content; and performances are preceded by rituals, offerings and invocations.

Of all the countries in South East Asia, it was in Indonesia, especially in Java and Bali, that the Ramayana reached its highest extent of influence—both cultural and spiritual. The earliest written version was the Ramayana Kakawin by Yogisvara in the tenth century. There were a number of other versions too. According to one scholar there are about 1200 different renderings of the story of Rama in East Java alone. It is interesting to note that one of the Javanese versions, the Serat Kanda, begins with Adam in Mecca and ends with the cremation of Sitha and Rama.

The famous 8th Century Hindu temple of Prambanan near Jogjakarta has beautiful bas-reliefs depicting Ramayana episodes. During the Madjapahit dynasty, the last Javanese Hindu Dynasty, scenes from the Ramayana were sculptured in the temple at Panataran in East Java. The figures are not as natural and full of life as in Prambanan, being more in the Wayang style, stylised and sophisticated.

Apart from the representations in stone, the Ramayana became an integral part of the cultural life of the Javanese and the Balinese, influencing their dances, puppet shows and dramas. Their classical dances have always borrowed from the story of the Ramayana. Wayang Kulit or leather puppet plays, which is the most popular entertainment in Indonesia even today, have stories from the Ramayana. The Ramayana Ballet performed for four days during the dry months every year, against the background of the Prambanan gopuran suspended in the moonlight, is an unforgetful experience. The extent to which the Ramayana had become an integral part of Javanese life is seen in the identification of their own natural landmarks with spots connected with Rama. Thus there is a Sarayu river with its charming valley in Java like the Sarayu in the Ramayana.

Among the people of Indonesia, the story of the Ramayana has continued to be a living force. Some years back a section of the student community there was seriously engaged in debating whether Vibhishana or Kumbhakarna had acted correctly—Vibhishana who in opposition to the evil actions of his eldest brother and King, deserted him and joined forces with the enemy, or Kumbhakarna who, though equally opposed to the evil deeds of Ravana, still played his part in defence of his country and sacrificed his life as a loyal subject of his King and citizen of his country.

The Ramayana texts and popular versions in South East Asia were not generally faithful to the Ramayana of Valmiki. Probably more than the Sanskrit original from India, the Prakrit versions were the ones that found greater popular acceptance in that area. Thus, in most of South East Asian versions, Sita is the daughter of Ravana, condemned to be discarded at birth by her father because of evil predictions about her. According to the “Luang Prabang” version from Laos, Sita was the daughter of Dasaratha!

To the young people of Indonesia, the Ramayana has thus continued to be relevant, its heroes and heroines to be studied, the good among them to be accepted as models and the example of the evil ones to be shunned. Prof. Sutjipto Wirjosuparto explains the influence of the Ramayana on the people of Indonesia by describing how the epic was considered to be closely identified with the Indonesian idea of chivalry. Rama was the embodiment of all that was good and Ravana, the embodiment of evil. Ram stood for the highest in man—as son, husband, king and ally or friend of the oppressed. They respected the faithfulness and purity of Queen Sita or Sintha as the Indonesians call her. In the education of Indonesian girls frequent mention is made of Sita's lofty example. Indeed, in the Ramayana, the people of South East Asia have found fine human values similar to those which they cherish most.

Considering that Indian culture and civilization started influencing countries in South East Asia from the early sixth century, it is not surprising that the Indian epic of the Ramayana was well-known to the people in these countries. The interesting aspect is that the Ramayana continued to be popular and an ever-green, effective influence on the cultural life of the people, even when they changed their religion from Hinduism to Buddhism and Islam. In Burma and in Thailand, Laos and Cambodia the people have been devotees of the Buddha for centuries now and yet the Ramayana has continued to be a living tradition. In Indonesia the majority of the people are Muslims but the story of the Ramayana still continues to be as popular as it ever was during the Mataram or Madjapahit days.

Perhaps this has been possible, because to the people of these countries even in the early days, Rama was not so much the incarnation of God as the embodiment of all that was great and good in man. While their versions of the Ramayana might have drawn inspiration from sources other than Valmiki, in this concept of Rama they were close to Valmiki, who portrayed Rama more as a great and unique man, than as an incarnation of God. Valmiki's question to Narada was not about any God but as to who among the heroes of this world was the highest in virtue and wisdom. As a Hero of the highest virtue and wisdom, Rama has always been the great ideal and model inspiring the peoples of South East Asia throughout centuries. Religion has played but little part in it, and so, irrespective of whether they are Buddhists, Christians or Muslims or Hindus, the Prince of Ayodhya and the story of the sufferings of his noble queen, and the destruction of Ravana, have always been an integral part of the life of these people.