Rama wooden puppet

RAMA

(West Java's Sundanese ethnic style, in batik cloths; adaptation of Hindu epic Ramayana)

The seventh avatar of the supreme God Vishnu and The Preserver.

Rama, the God Vishnu’s seventh avatar, was the central character in the Ramayana, a Hindu epic named after him.

The essential tale of Rama has spread across South-East Asia and evolved into unique renditions of the epic. The Kakawin Ramayana of (Java) Indonesia; the Ramakavaca of (Bali) Indonesia; Hikayat Seri Rama of Malaysia; Maradia Lawana of the Philippines; Ramakien of Thailand are to name some. Rama is called Phra Ram in Thailand, Yama in Yama Zatdaw (essentially the Burmese Ramayana) and Preah Ream in the Cambodian Reamker. Buddha in the Laotian Pra Lak Pra Lam is regarded as an incarnation of Rama.

The legends of Rama are witnessed in elaborate illustration at the Wat Phra Kaew temple in Bangkok.

Dancers in Central Java, Indonesia performed dances of Ramayana on a regular basis in the complex of ninth century built Prambanan temple.

Avatar

Ravana, the ten-headed giant emperor of Lanka, had overpowered Gods and Goddesses and ruled heaven, earth and netherworld. He was also arrogant, destructive and a patron of evil doers. He had obtained nectar of immortality from God Brahma. God Vishnu, the Preserver promised to kill Ravana by incarnating as Rama, the prince of the ancient kingdom of Kosala. Rama then married Sita, the avatar of Goddess Lakshmi, eternal consort of Vishnu.

Exile

The king announced that he planned to crown Rama the crown prince. However, the queen was made to fear for the safety and future of her own son Bharata. Fearing that Rama would ignore or possibly victimize his younger brother for the sake of power, she demanded that the king banished Rama to a forest for fourteen years and that Bharata be crowned in Rama’s place. She was granted two boons by the king when she had saved his life a long time ago, and the queen used them to serve her purpose. Rama realized that the king had not to break a solemn promise at any time and neither should a son disobey his father’s command. Sita joined her husband in exile despite his discouraging her, as it was her duty and out of love for Rama that she had to be at his side at all time.

Abduction

When Ravana kidnapped Sita, the couple underwent great personal hardships during their separation. Rama denounced himself for failing to defend her and agonized over her safety and pain. Sita on the other hand knew that it was in Rama’s destiny to fight to rescue her.

Facing Ravana

With the vast help from Hanuman, the captivity of Sita was discovered. Rama had nothing but to face Ravana to rescue Sita. After a long fight, Rama decapitated Ravana’s central head, but only to find another one growing in its place. This cycle continued. At the end, Rama fired the most powerful arrow thrusting Ravana’s stomach and destroyed the store of the nectar of immortality, killing him finally. Gods including Brahma, Shiva and Indra appeared out of the sky, thanking the Avatar for delivering the universe from the grips of evil, upon the culmination of his mission.

Rama’s compassion

Following Ravana’s death, Rama was immediately compassionate. He asked the new king and the surviving giants to properly cremate their dead king, who he acknowledged to be a great being worthy of respect and admiration, despite his patronage of evil.

Product specification:
    Wood:       Alstonia spp.
    Dress:       Batik cloth.
    Process:    Hand made.
    Colour:       Full colour.
    Height:       ± 60 cm.
    Weight:      Approx. 2.5 kg (including packaging).