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„r“ R„macaritam“nas (Devan„gar“: - - -) (Hindi/ Avadhi) is an epic poem composed by the 16th-century Indian poet, Goswami Tulsidas (c.1532-1623) (also transliterated as Tulasidasa). An English translation of R„macaritam“nasa is "The Ocean of the Deeds of Rama". As mentioned in the B-la Ka--a of the composition, Tulsidas started writing it in Vikram Samvat 1631 (1574 CE) in Avadhpuri, Ayodhya. It was completed in two years and seven months. A large portion of the poem was composed at Varanasi, where the poet spent most of his later life. It is considered one of the greatest works of Hindi literature.
Language
It is written in avadhi, which belongs to the Eastern Hindi language family.
Structure
The R„macaritam“nas consists of seven books, of which the first two, entitled Childhood and Ayodhya, make up more than half the work. The work is composed in quatrains called chaupais, broken by dohas or couplets, with an occasional sortha and chhand, the latter being a hurried metre of many rhymes and alliterations.
Storyline
The R„macaritam“nas is a retelling of the events of the Sanskrit epic Ramayana, concerning the exploits of Rama, prince of Ayodhya. The great poem is also called Tulsi-krita Ramayana, or "The Ramayana of Tulsidas".
The poem revisits Ramayana of Valmiki, but is not a mere retelling of the Sanskrit epic. Where Valmiki has condensed the story, Tulsidas has expanded, and, conversely, wherever the elder poet has lingered longest, there his successor has condensed.
An unpublished English poetic translation of Ramacaritamanas is provided by (Late) Binda Prasad Khattri of New Market, Banda, Uttar Pradesh. Apparently, the translation can be sung essentially in the same way and with the same rhythm as the original Hindi work.
See also
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