Priests and Princes I- The Ramayana

The dynamics of interaction between priests and princes is clearly brought out in the two epics that symbolize the Hindu ethos:
The Ramayana and the Mahabharata
The Ramayana is set at an earlier period( probably 1000-800 BC).Supposedly composed by Valmiki, a brigand who transformed himself into a Brahmin by prolonged meditation, it brings out several features of the caste system prevailing in those times.The story of Valmiki himself indicates that birth lines at that time could be crossed in the determination of caste.

Conflict between priests (Brahmins) and princes (Kshatriyas) is also described in the Ramayana.A prince, Kaushik, and his army is defeated by a Brahmin, Vasishta, who invokes supernatural divinely gifted powers for the purpose.The defeated but strong-willed Kaushik becomes a Brahmin, taking the name of Vishwamitra - again, through prolonged practice of meditation and asceticism.

In fact, even the main epic, the war between Rama (symbolizing the good) and Ravana ( symbolizing evil) can be seen from a different angle: the fact that Rama was a Kshatriya while Ravana was the son of a Brahmin, and was learned in the Vedas.The concept of an evil Brahmin who takes possession of a kingdom, and inflicts various defeats on other kings (and even gods) before being ultimately defeated in battle and losing his life is thus a counterpoint to Vishwamitra's story.

The controversial casteist element in the Ramayana is the depiction of some of the characters as Rakshas(demons) and Vanaras(monkeys).Ravana had a rakshasa mother.If you read this just bas another myth, similar to Greek myths, there is no controversy.

On the other hand, most of the places mentioned in the story of Rama's travels through India are correlated with single geographical places today.Ramayana's Lanka is equated with Sri Lanka, without adequate reason.If that is true, Kishkindhhya, the kingdom of the Vanaras is, by implication, located in Tamil Nadu. Dravidian politicians consider this to be a gratuitous insult by the racist Aryan elite who controlled the ebb and flow of Hindu religious practices of that time.This view has affected politics in Tamil Nadu since the 1930's.

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