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Ravana converses with a demon by the sea
Illustration to a dispersed Ramayana series
Kangra, Punjab Hills; ca. 1780
Opaque watercolor on paper
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of Cynthia Hazen Polsky (MMA-1985.398.14)
Rama and Lakshmana on Mount Prasravana
Folio from the dispersed Shangri Ramayana series, Book IV (Kishkindhakanda)
Possibly Nurpur or Bahu, Punjab Hills, early 18th century
Opaque watercolor with silver on paper
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Purchase, Cynthia Hazen Polsky Gift (MMA-1999.400)
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Rama
Probably originating as a historic chieftain of the Ganges valley,
the god-king Rama (literally, pleasing) is the seventh incarnation
of Vishnu. Rama is the divine personification of the ideal, righteous
ruler and the vanquisher of evil. The Rama story, an epic recounted
in verse in the Ramayana, treats as its subject Prince
Rama, who, though unjustly banished from court, follows the path
of duty. After exile and long battles, Rama finally triumphs and
gains his rightful position as king. The story has become an enduring,
integral element of Indian culture expressed through the visual
and dramatic arts. Rama is an appealing figure who symbolizes the
ideal ruler, son, and husband, and rulers often commissioned artists
to cast Rama in their own image.
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