Description
Adhyātmarāmāyaṇa is a medieval retelling of the epic Rāmāyaṇa written in the perspective of Vedānta school of Hindu philosophy. This text has a running commentary by Rāmavarmaṇ. Like Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa there are seven Kāṇdas (Chapters) with the same name foliated seperately in this Ms. (1) Bālakāṇḍa, (2) Ayodhyākāṇḍa, (3) Āraṇyakāṇḍa, (4) Kiṣkindhākāṇḍa, (5) Sundarakāṇḍa, (6) Yuddhakāṇḍa, (7) Uttarakāṇḍa. This version of the epic inforces the concept of Rāma being an Adhyātma a universal incarnate being. The text is present in dialogue form between supreme deities Śiva (as Maheśa) and Pārvatī (as Umā). Like Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa there are seven Kāṇdas (Chapters) of the same title. The major twist in this version of the story is Rāvaṇa the antagonist kidnaps an illusory Sītā while the real Sītā , Rāma's wife was hidden in order to set the the stage for Rāma to defeat and end him for all his past wrong doings, with the blessings of the deities. The text is traditionally ascribed to the author Vyāsa. The text is also present in the Brahmāṇdapurāṇa. This Ms. is written in 7–12 lines per folio. Title is present in colophon of the Uttarakāṇḍa (f.53a). Cover and back page are blank with triple red vertical and horizontal margins creating a frame. There are triple red vertical margins on each side of the folio. The double Pūrna Virāmas (full stops) style vertical brackets are in red. Mistakes are covered with yellow or blacked out. Some corrections and additions in the margins. Significant syllables and words rubbed with orange powder for highlighting. The Ms. is dated saṃvat 1877 and śaka 1725 which is inconsistent.
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