Table Of ContentA Woman’s Rāmāyaṇa
The Rāmāyaṇa, an Indian epic, is one of the world’s best-loved stories.
Made available in English for the first time, this version by a female poet
from Bengal is very direct, touching, timely, and accessible. The three-part
poem is a highly individual rendition of the ancient epic, and instead of
celebrating masculine heroism it laments the suffering of women caught in
the play of male ego.
T his book presents a translation and commentary on the text, and pro-
vides readers with an alternative view of the tale. It expands the understand-
ing both of the history of women’s self-expression in India and the cultural
potency of the epic tale. The book should be of interest to students and
researchers of South Asian studies, R āmāyaṇa studies and women’s and
gender studies.
Mandakranta Bose is Professor Emerita at the University of British
Columbia, Canada. She has published widely on the classical performing
arts and literature of India, gender studies and Hinduism.
Sarika Priyadarshini Bose is Lecturer in English at the University of
British Columbia, Canada. Her research interests include Victorian litera-
ture, children’s literature, gender studies and composition.
Routledge Hindu Studies Series
Series Editor : Gavin Flood
Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies
The Routledge Hindu Studies Series , in association with the Oxford Centre
for Hindu Studies, intends the publication of constructive Hindu theologi-
cal, philosophical and ethical projects aimed at bringing Hindu traditions
into dialogue with contemporary trends in scholarship and contemporary
society. The series invites original, high quality, research level work on reli-
gion, culture and society of Hindus living in India and abroad. Proposals
for annotated translations of important primary sources and studies in the
history of the Hindu religious traditions will also be considered.
Epistemologies and the Limitations of Philosophical Inquiry
Doctrine in Madhva Vedanta
Deepak Sarma
A Hindu Critique of Buddhist Epistemology
Kumarila on perception
The “Determination of Perception” chapter of Kumarilabhatta’s
Slokarvarttika translation and commentary
John Taber
Samkara’s Advaita Vedanta
A way of teaching
Jacqueline Hirst
Attending Krishna’s Image
Chaitanya Vaishnava Murti-seva as devotional truth
Kenneth Russell Valpey
Advaita Vedanta and Vaisnavism
The Philosophy of Madhusudana Sarasvati
Sanjukta Gupta
Classical Samkhya and Yoga
An Indian metaphysics of experience
Mikel Burley
Self-Surrender (Prapatti) to God in Shrivaishnavism
Tamil cats and Sanskrit monkeys
Srilata Raman
The Chaitanya Vaishnava Vedanta of Jiva Gosvami
When knowledge meets devotion
Ravi M. Gupta
Gender and Narrative in the Mahabharata
Edited by Simon Brodbeck and Brian Black
Yoga in the Modern World
Contemporary perspectives
Edited By Mark Singleton and Jean Byrne
Consciousness in Indian Philosophy
The Advaita doctrine of ‘awareness only’
Sthaneshwar Timalsina
Desire and Motivation in Indian Philosophy
Christopher G. Framarin
Women in the Hindu Tradition
Rules, roles and exceptions
Mandakranta Bose
Religion, Narrative and Public Imagination in South Asia
Past and place in the Sanskrit Mahabharata
James Hegarty
Interpreting Devotion
The poetry and legacy of a female Bhakti saint of India
Karen Pechilis
Hindu Perspectives on Evolution
Darwin, dharma, and design
C. Mackenzie Brown
Pilgrimage in the Hindu Tradition
Salvific space
Knut A. Jacobsen
A Woman’s Rāmāyaṇa
Candrāvatī’s Bengali epic
Translated with Introduction and Notes by
Mandakranta Bose and Sarika Priyadarshini Bose
A Woman’s R āmāyaṇa
Candrāvatī’s Bengali epic
Translated with Introduction and Notes
by
Mandakranta Bose and
Sarika Priyadarshini Bose
First published 2013
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa
business
© 2013 Mandakranta Bose and Sarika Priyadarshini Bose
The right of Mandakranta Bose and Sarika Priyadarshini Bose to be
identified as authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance
with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in
any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or
registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation
without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Candravati, active 16th century.
[Ramayana. English]
A Woman’s Ramayana : Candravati’s Bengali epic / Mandakranta Bose
and Sarika Priyadarshini Bose.
pages cm. – (Routledge Hindu studies series)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Candravati, active 16th century. Ramayana. 2. Valmiki. Ramayana.
3. Women in Hinduism–India–Bengal–History–16th cent. I. Bose,
Mandakranta, 1938- II. Bose, Sarika Priyadarshini. III. Valmiki.
Ramayana. IV. Title.
BL1139.25.C3613 2013
294.5’92204521–dc23 2012033398
ISBN: 978-0-415-62529-6 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-203-44148-0 (ebk)
Typeset in Times New Roman
by Deer Park Productions
In memory of
Tripti Rini Bose
Loving Mother-in-law and Grandmother
This Page intentionally left blank
Contents
Preface xi
Guide to pronunciation xiii
1 Introduction 1
2 Candrāvatī Rāmāyaṇa : Part 1 52
3 Candrāvatī Rāmāyaṇa : Part 2 68
4 Candrāvatī Rāmāyaṇa : Part 3 76
Appendix 1. The Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 92
Appendix 2. The Kṛttivāsī Rāmāyaṇa 103
Appendix 3. Narrative parallels and omissions 112
Appendix 4. Nayāncāñd Ghoṣa’s Candrāvatī 120
Appendix 5. The Ballad of Maluā 123
Appendix 6. The Ballad of Kenārām the Robber 135
Appendix 7. Glossary 140
Index 155
Illustrations
Chapter 1, Introduction: Fig. 1. Sītā’s ordeal by fire. 33
Chapter 2, Part 1: Fig. 2. Rāvaṇa. 54
Chapter 3, Part 2: Fig. 3. The Golden Deer. 71
Chapter 4, Part 3: Fig. 4. Kukuyā looking at Sītā’s
portrait of Rāvaṇa. 78
