Ramayana exists at various levels:
Firstly it has the religious connotation but goes much beyond it.
Next, it is mega entertainment. The story was told to groups of people in the family, village and in satsangs. It was also performed on the stage with drama, music and dance.
Then it was a kind of instructional material that sets moral standards for human behaviour at different strata of the society under varying circumstances, and demonstrates ideal relationships within the family.
Fourthly it integrates Rama’s entourage with the animal kingdom in the form of an army of monkeys under that eternal loyalist Bhakta Hanuman, who assumes superman proportions.
Ramayana is a link for Hindus all over the world. Even the poor indentured labour sent to Mauritius and Fiji carried something of the Ramayana with them, while they had no other worldly possession to take with them.
It has permanence—it is relevant at all times, in all places and in all ages.
The fruit from the Ramayana
The Ramayana is the source of many stories told to adults and children.
It teaches:
importance of duty
correct behaviour
parental reverence
piety
friendship
justice
governance
peaceful co-existence between all God’s creatures
the respect and need to preserve the ecological balance and natural order of things.
The epic’s appeal lies in the human frailties it explores.
It is finally the victory of good over evil.
It is the viability of the utopian concept of ‘Rama Rajya’, in which Rama, the perfect and just
king ruled over a happy kingdom, free from want and war.
