
The Rāmāyana of Valmīki
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Narrated by:
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Sagar Arya
About this listen
The ancient Indian Sanskrit epic the Rāmāyana was composed some time between the first and fifth centuries BCE. As is the case with most ancient literature firmly rooted in the oral tradition, precise dating is problematic. Traditionally attributed to the sage Valmīki, and composed in rhyming couplets, it is one of the two great Indian epics (the other being the Mahābhārata); consequently it is known and revered not just throughout the Indian subcontinent but also in South-East Asian countries as well, including Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia - indeed wherever Hindu culture became established.
It relates the tale of a Prince of Ayodhya, Rāma, and recounts the various episodes of his exile and subsequent return. The narrative follows Rāma's quest and rescue mission, bringing home his beloved Sita from the clutches of the demon king of Lanka, Ravana, aided by an army of monkeys. While the basic story involves palace politics and battles with demon tribes, it is also infused with ethics, philosophy, logic and notes on duty.
In the Mahābhārata, characters are presented with all their human follies and failings; the Rāmāyana by contrast leans towards an ideal state of things. For instance, Rāma is the ideal son and king, Sita the ideal wife, Hanuman the ideal devotee, Lakshman and Bhārat the ideal brothers, and even Ravana, the demon villain, is not entirely despicable. This translation, by Ralph T. H. Griffith, first published in 1870, was the first complete English version and has retained its initial reputation as an outstanding achievement - as much for its literary as its scholastic qualities.
There are six Books or Khandas (a seventh which is sometimes included is generally regarded as a much later addition) containing some 24,000 verses which, as with the original, are presented in rhyming couplets. This makes the Rāmāyana of a similar length to the Iliad and Odyssey combined, and there are a handful of occasions when, to avoid repetition, Griffith inserts a prose précis.
Curiously he declined to translate The Glory of Uma followed by The Birth of Kartikeya in Book 1 on the grounds that it might offend the sensibility of his contemporaries! As one commentator remarked, Griffith was sometimes reluctant to ‘show much leg.’ In this case, the ‘offending’ verses have been newly translated for this Ukemi recording by Anwesha Arya, and delightful they are too!
The Rāmāyana and its stories have been part of the cultural life and language of the reader, Sagar Arya, since childhood; thus this recording was especially important to him, and he infuses it with a special understanding and authority.
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Mahabharata: The Greatest Spiritual Epic of All Time
- By: Krishna Dharma
- Narrated by: Sarvabhavana Das
- Length: 45 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Said to be the world's longest poem, Mahabharata was originally composed in 100,000 Sanskrit verses by the ancient Indian sage Vyasa. Revered as a sacred text within Hinduism, it contains the great spiritual teaching Bhagavad-gita. Krishna Dharma has condensed the epic into a fast paced novel that fully retains the majestic mood of the original. A powerful and moving tale, it recounts the history of the five heroic Pandava brothers, sons of the Emperor Pandu.
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Narrator's constant mispronunciations ruined it...
- By GrayDharma on 11-23-15
By: Krishna Dharma
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The Ramayana Of Valmiki (Annotated)
- By: Valmiki Ramayana
- Narrated by: Matthew Schmitz
- Length: 54 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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Narrated by Matthew Schmitz of Altrusian Grace Media, this English prose version of the Ramayana is told in a story form capturing the true and authentic spirit of the original Sanskrit and which makes it easy and enjoyable to listen to. The Ramayana is one of the greatest epics of ancient literature, a monumental work that has transcended the boundaries of time and culture to become a story cherished across generations and geographies.
By: Valmiki Ramayana
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The Ramayana
- Rama the Personality of Godhead
- By: Valmiki Muni
- Narrated by: Radha Krsna Das, The Vraj Kunj
- Length: 16 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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The epic poem, by Maharishi Valmiki Muni, narrates the life of Lord Rama, a legendary prince of Ayodhya city in the kingdom of Kosala. The epic follows his fourteen-year exile to the forest urged by his father King Dasharatha, on the request of Rama's stepmother Kaikeyi. He traveled across forests in the Indian subcontinent with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana. Rama endured the kidnapping of Sita by Ravana–the demon king of Lanka, which resulted in a great war; and Rama's eventual return to Ayodhya to be crowned king amidst jubilation and celebration. The
By: Valmiki Muni
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Wisdom of the Ages the Upanishads - Sublime Teachings of the Vedas
- By: H.G. Jagannatha Dasa
- Narrated by: H.G. Jagannatha Dasa
- Length: 17 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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The Vedic scriptures, the Upanishads are a 5000-year-old esoteric, intriguing, mystical body of work which carries within it the seed of divine, transcendental knowledge. We live in a world wherein yoga now reigns supreme as the preferred, go-to method of modern spiritual realization, and this unique, exclusive, audio presentation by Bhakti Yogi H. G. Jagannatha Dasa paves the way for a clearer, more meaningful understanding of the powerful, enlightening yoga system.
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Origen
- By: Joseph Trigg
- Narrated by: John Telfer
- Length: 12 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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Origen (c. 185-c. 253) was the most influential Christian theologian before Augustine, the founder of Biblical study as a serious discipline in the Christian tradition, and a figure with immense influence on the development of Christian spirituality. This volume presents a comprehensive and accessible insight into Origen's life and writings, written and compiled by Joseph W. Trigg, a leading Origen authority. An introduction analyzes the principal influences that formed him as a Christian and as a thinker.
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Thankful for this book
- By A from VA on 03-22-24
By: Joseph Trigg
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Shōbōgenzō
- The Treasure House of the Eye of the True Teaching
- By: Eihei Dōgen
- Narrated by: Brian Nishii
- Length: 55 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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The Shōbōgenzō is the recognized spiritual masterpiece by the 13th- century Japanese Sōtō Zen Master Eihei Dōgen. It is comprised of discourses that he gave to his disciples, in person or in writing, at various times between 1231 and his death 22 years later at age 53. These discourses cover a wide range of topics pertinent to those in monastic life, though often also relevant to those training in lay life.
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I'm just amazed
- By Amazon Customer on 05-01-21
By: Eihei Dōgen
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Rama the Steadfast
- An Early Form of the Ramayana
- By: M Valmiki, John Brockington, Mary Brockington
- Narrated by: Sid Sagar
- Length: 17 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Warrior-prince Rama is about to be crowned Young King, when he hears the devastating news that his father, king of Ayodhya, has been tricked into banishing him to the forest. His devoted wife, Sita, insists on accompanying him in exile, but the evil 10-headed Lord Ravana has fallen deeply in love with the beautiful princess and steals her away. Aided by Hanuman, mighty captain of the monkeys, Rama sets out across the world to find her and destroy Ravana in a deadly battle.
By: M Valmiki, and others
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The History of the Peloponnesian War
- By: Thucydides
- Narrated by: Mike Rogers
- Length: 22 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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The rivalry between two of the dominant city states of Ancient Greece, Athens and Sparta, erupted into a war lasting nearly 30 years and was to have a dramatic effect on the balance of power in the area. Between 431 and 404 BCE, the two cities battled it out on land and sea, aided by their alliances with neighbouring states: Athens’ Delian League vigorously opposed Sparta’s Peloponnesian League in a conflict which effectively involved the whole region.
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Full frontal of war, politics, diplomacy, destruction, plunder
- By Jeff Lacy on 05-27-20
By: Thucydides
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The Lotus Sutra
- The White Lotus Sutra of the True Dharma
- By: Hendrik Kern, Nicolas Soames - translator
- Narrated by: Taradasa
- Length: 12 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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The Lotus Sūtra is one of the most important Mahāyāna texts and the most widely read, chanted and revered, particularly in Asian Buddhist countries, notably China and Japan. It is certainly a remarkable document, replete with the Mahāyāna characteristics of fantastical images, extraordinary appearances, magical happenings, views of time and space which are galactic in size; and pronouncements which are definite, unequivocal, practical in some areas and dependent upon a faith commitment in others.
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Lotus Sutra
- By UBS on 10-10-19
By: Hendrik Kern, and others
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The Buddha and the Sahibs
- The men who discovered India's lost religion
- By: Charles Allen
- Narrated by: Sam Dastor
- Length: 12 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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For nearly 1,000 years, from the destruction of temples and monasteries by Muslim invaders in the 11th and 12th centuries, followed by Hinduism’s increasing power, Buddhism vanished from the country of its origin. Though hugely influential throughout Asia, the religion was forgotten in India.
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Great subject and story ruined by sub pa narration
- By Kindle Customer on 07-19-17
By: Charles Allen
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Zhuangzi: Chuang Tzu
- By: Zhuang Zi, Chuang Tsu
- Narrated by: Chirag Patel
- Length: 12 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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The Chuang Tsu is one of the most important books in Chinese literature and philosophy. It is one of the two foundational texts of Daoism. Also titled Zhuangzi, it is a commentary and extension of the Dao de Jing/Tao Te Ching, in the same way that Mencius' Analects are an exploration of Confucius' thought. Written in around 300BCE during the Warring States period, it is a collection of anecdotes, fables, and stories that are as silly and funny as they are profound and thought provoking.
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Best version on Audio I have Found
- By TJR on 01-12-25
By: Zhuang Zi, and others
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International Relations
- A Very Short Introduction
- By: Christian Reus-Smit
- Narrated by: Johnathan Rufus Welsh
- Length: 4 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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International relations affects everyone's lives: their security, economic well-being, rights and freedoms, and the environment they share. Recently we have seen the transformation from a world of empires to today's world of sovereign states, which are enmeshed in a complex array of international institutions, all exercising degrees of political authority. The new global organization of political authority has far-reaching consequences. This audiobook untangles this complex world, providing an accessible framework for understanding the contours of global political change.
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Not short nor intro
- By Leo Wang on 02-08-25
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Two Treatises of Government and A Letter Concerning Toleration
- By: John Locke
- Narrated by: Leighton Pugh
- Length: 12 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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John Locke (1632-1704) was a product of his troubled times: he lived through the English Civil War, the Interregnum, the Restoration, Monmouth’s Rebellion, the Bloody Assizes and the Glorious Revolution. His empirical thinking was very much directed at finding rational solutions to the root causes of those troubles.
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biblical reasons against monarchy
- By Kindle Customer on 02-09-20
By: John Locke
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Human, All Too Human
- A Book for Free Spirits
- By: Friedrich Nietzsche
- Narrated by: Michael Lunts
- Length: 15 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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It was with Human, All Too Human, first published in 1878, that Nietzsche developed the aphoristic style that so suited his challenging views and uncompromising style. The text is divided into three main sections: 'Of the First and Last Things', 'History of the Moral Feelings' and 'The Religious Life'.
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Thrilling Nietzsche
- By Cakes Green on 06-12-17
Awesomely Done!
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This is the best academic translation that you could have in English.
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So you can imagine my surprise and disappointment when, having pushed through the slower parts of the story filled with seemingly endless repetitive conversation, the final battle scene, the climax of the story I'd spent 40 hours listening to, had a multitude of chapters admittedly cut out for "repetition" ironically, and then an ending contrary to everything I know about the story. The ending has been changed and the story ended long before the famous ending of the actual account of the well known Ramayana.
I don't know what happened here, but Valmiki famously wrote his story after a hunter killed a bird in love in front of him. There's no happy endings in the Ramayana, contrary to this retelling.
What's even more upsetting is that the narration is fantastic! Way better than the vast majority of audiobooks. I'm so destroyed by the changed ending and the multiple chapter just removed for no apparent reason from the climax of the story! I don't understand, it simply makes no sense.
Ending is Disappointing
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However, when it comes to something as magnificent as the Ramayana, if you are taking up this task you are responsible to uphold a certain quality.
Reading the first 3/4 it is obvious the level of care and dedication it took. So the expectations were set high. But at the end the most intense moments of the story parts are omitted. The strongest villain (besides Dashanan) is killed and we hear it as an after thought.
As mentioned by another reviewer, we hear so much depth and detail about so many mundane parts of the story and when it gets to the climax(es) it falls flat.
Frankly, I've never seen anything made so beautifully and with so much care that was fumbled, like this, at the finish line.
Also missing a big chunk of the story at the end.
So close to perfect but equally as close to failur
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This version of the Ramayana was beautifully written and narrated, but it felt incomplete because it was missing the Final book, the Uttarakanda.
There are many who prefer to have the story of Lord Rama and Devi Sita end with a Happily Ever After ending. If we lived in a perfect world, I can understand that. This version is perfect for those who like a happy ending.
I do not believe that Lord Rama and Devi Sita had a Happily Ever After during their lifetime on earth because the world wouldn't allow them that. I do believe that horrible, narrow-minded people chose to doubt Devi Sita and would continue to do so regardless of what tests she passed to prove her virtue. I do believe that in order to protect her from the maliciousness, Lord Rama sent her to Valmiki's Ashram for her safety as she wouldn't be any safer with her father than with him. Even if it meant being separated from his love, Lord Rama always did what was correct. His comfort and happiness never came first. He did what was best for his kingdom and for his wife, whom he loved with all his heart. He knew that his Sita was a strong woman; she followed him into exile and survived her captivity. She loved him with all her heart and would also do what was best even if it meant being separated from her love.
Two great references to support the existence of the Uttarakanda are:
A wonderful video on YouTube, "Uttara Ramayanam is Real or a Myth? || A research-based documentary film by Project Shivoham," points out that The Bala Kanda's 4th Sarga, 2nd Shloka - twenty-four thousand verses and divided them into five hundred chapters and six books. In addition, he composed the epilogue.
"The Ramayana of Valmiki: The Complete English Translation" from Princeton Library of Asian Translations also points out in The Bala Kanda's 4th Sarga - "It was after Rama had regained his kingdom that the holy and self-controlled seer Valmiki composed this entire history in such wonderful words. When the wise master had completed, including the sections dealing with the future and final events."
Ramayana Minus the Uttarakanda
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Not for casual listening
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