Epics in Imprints-1.pdf - Vivekananda Kendra Prakashan

VIVEKANANDA KENDRA PATRIKA
THE RAMAYANA IN LAOS (Vientiane
Version)
KAMALA RATNAM
The culture of Laos, Thailand and
Cambodia is made up of the earliest forms
of Hinduism or Vedic Brahmanism and
Hinayana (Theravada) Buddhism.
Consequently it shows the deep meditative
and philosophic aspect of the teachings of
the Buddha coupled with the aesthetic
imagination and literary aspects of Hindu
mind. This entire region is dotted with
temples dedicated to Buddha, decorated
with figures of Hindu gods and goddesses,
united and protected as if within the
mother-like embrace of long rows of guided
paintings on the walls depicting the story
of the Ramayana. Apart from their artistic
merits as mural paintings and the sanctity
and reverence attached to them as objects
of temple worship, the frescoes play an
important part in the reconstruction of the
Ramayana story as known in this area.
In Laos the Ramayana is present in five
forms—(1) Dance (2) Song (3) Painting and
sculpture (4) Sacred texts to be recited on
festive occasions and (5) Manuscripts, and
enjoys popularity in that order. The
Ramayana as dance-drama enjoys the
pride of place, in the Royal Palace at Luang
Prabang and the ‘Natyasala’ dance school
at Vientiane. With the dance-drama goes
its appropriate music and song. The
Ramayana in painting and sculpture is
seen within the temples. In its richest
forms it is found in the court-temples of
Luang Prabang, a detailed account of
which has been published as an illustrated
article by me. Following the Indian way
of life and the teachings of the Buddha,
which found expression in their art and
poetry, the Lao have remained a people of
simple customs and habits, deeply marked
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by a religious awareness synthesized by a
feeling of peace and brotherhood with all
living beings.
The Indo-Chinese Peninsula was the
recipient of ancient Indian civilization and
culture epitomized by the Ramayana and
the Mahabharata and later it received the
Buddhist Theravada philosophy which
came to it via Burma and Ceylon. While
Buddhism provided the moral basis and a
practical code for daily life, the Ramayana
and the Mahabharata became entrenched
in the emotional and artistic life of the
people. In time the art of temple-building,
sculpture, carving on wood and stone,
drama, theatre and ballet drew their
inspiration from the episodes of the
Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Since
artistic expression requires ample material
resources and comparative freedom from
the cares of daily life, the Royal Courts
became the repositories of the Ramayana
culture. The Buddhistic temples with the
humanistic approach were catering to the
social needs of the community. They
provided seminaries, scholars, hospitals
and homes for the aged and disabled, they
looked after the poor. The corridors of these
temples resounded with the reading of the
Ramayana text, while their walls were
ornamented with murals describing scenes
from the sacred Indian texts. In many
temples figures of pre-Buddhistic Hindu
gods and goddesses were boldly chiseled
or carved on wood or stone. They were rich
spiritual fare for the kindly and simple
people of greater India. And in all these
countries the fabric of beauty inspired by
the Ramayana provided a splendid canopy
for preservation and protection of the pure
moral teachings of the Buddha.
(Extract from : The Ramayana Tradition
in Asia: Sahitya Akadami;
Ed.V.Raghavan, New Delhi 1989.)