by Ramesh Menon
Budha The planet Mercury; he is also a God.
Chaitra An auspicious lunar month; also, Kubera’s garden.
chakra A wheel: in the body, a subtle center of energy along the spinal column and in the brain. See also Sudarshana chakra.
chakravaka A mythical bird, a symbol of despairing love.
chamara A whisk made of silk threads.
chandala An untouchable.
chandana The sandalwood tree.
Chandra The Moon God.
charana An unearthly being.
Chiranjivi A long-lived, almost immortal person.
chital A kind of deer.
Chitraratha The king of the gandharvas.
choodamani A hair ornament.
Daitya Any of a group of demons, sons of Diti.
Daksha A Prajapati who was Brahma’s son and Sati’s father.
Danava Any of a group of demons, sons of Danu.
danda A staff; also, punishment.
darbha A kind of grass.
darbhasana A seat made of darbha grass.
Deva Any of a class of celestial, elemental beings; God; also, “Being of Light.”
devadaru The Himalayan cedar.
Devaloka The heavenly realm of the Devas.
devastra The astra of the Devas.
Devi Goddess.
Dhanu The constellation Sagittarius; also, a God.
dhanusha A bow.
Dhanvantari The original physician, who rose from the sea of milk with the amrita.
dharma Truth; justice; duty.
Dhruva The North Star.
dhyana Meditation.
diggaja One of the elephants that support the world. There are four diggajas.
Dikpala The lord of a direction.
diksha A gift or offering for a brahmana.
dumarus A two-sided hand drum beaten by stones attached to it by string.
dundubhi A percussion instrument of the Gods.
durdina An evil day.
dwapara yuga The third great age.
dwarapalaka A gatekeeper or sentinel.
Dwividha A powerful vanara chieftain.
ekarnava The original sea of life.
gaandharva An astra of the gandharvas.
gana A servitor of Siva.
gandarvastra An astra of the gandharvas.
gandharva Any of a race of heavenly minstrels.
Garuda Vishnu’s Eagle.
Gayatri The mother of all mantras.
ghee Clarified butter.
gochara A planetary transit.
gotra Subcaste, clan.
guna An essence of nature. There are three gunas: sattva, rajas, and tamas.
guru A spiritual teacher or guide; master.
gyana Knowledge, wisdom.
Halahala The original poison, which Siva drank.
Hari Vishnu.
hatya Murder.
havis The offering from a sacrifice.
Himavan The Himalaya.
Hiranyagarbha Pregnant with the Golden Egg.
homa Ritual worship.
Ikshvaku A king, founder of Rama’s royal House of Ikshvaku. A race of the Sun is named after him.
Indra A God, the king of the Devas.
Indradhanush A rainbow.
Jambavan The king of the bears.
Janaki Janaka’s daughter, Sita.
Janardhana Vishnu.
janma nakshatra A lunar birth star.
jata Dreadlocks of the kind rishis wear.
jatakarma A caste ritual.
jaya Victory.
Jaya vijayi bhava! “Be victorious!”
jitendriya One who has conquered his senses.
jivatma An embodied soul.
jrumbhana An astra.
kaala Time.
Kaali The black Goddess.
kadamba A tree.
kali yuga The fourth and the most evil of the ages.
Kama, Kamadeva The God of love.
Kamadhenu The first, sacred, cow of wishes.
kamandalu A brahmana’s water pot.
Kama shastra The sacred arts of loving.
kanchana Golden.
kankana A bracelet.
kanya A virgin; maiden; young woman.
kanyadana A gift given by a bride or young maiden.
kanya sulka Bride-price.
karma Action; duty; also, the fruit of past deeds.
Karttikeya Siva’s son.
Kaumodaki, Kaumodiki Vishnu’s mace.
kavacha Armor.
kavya Poem.
kinnara Faunlike being, known to ask riddles.
kinnari Female kinnara.
kirtana A devotional song.
Kodanda Rama’s bow.
koyal A cuckoo.
krita yuga The first of the four ages; the purest, most pristine yuga.
krodhagraha A room reserved for being angry in; “chamber of anger.”
krosa A measurement of distance.
kshatriya A member of the caste of royal warriors.
Kshirasagara A mythical sea of milk.
Kubera A Deva who is Lord of treasures.
kula A clan.
kulaguru The teacher of a royal family.
kulapati The head of a clan.
kundala Earrings; studs.
Kurma The Tortoise: Vishnu’s second Avatara.
kutila A hut.
lagna An ascendant, rising sign.
Lakshmi The Goddess of fortune; Vishnu’s consort.
linga Siva’s phallic emblem; phallus.
loka World; realm; dimension.
Lokapala The Gods; the guardians of the four quarters; also, the world.
Madhuvana Vineyard.
magadhi Bard, singer.
maharathika A great warrior.
Mahavishnu Vishnu.
mahima siddhi The occult power to grow big and small.
mahodadi A great sea.
mahodara Consumption
malaya Of a mountain.
Manasa sarovara A holy lake in the Himalaya that Brahma made from his mind.
manavastra An astra.
mandala Dimension; galaxy.
Mangala The planet Mars.
mantapa A pavilion.
mantra A sacred incantation.
Manu An ancient king and lawgiver.
Margasirsa, Mrigasirsa An auspicious Hindu lunar month.
Marut A companion of Vayu, the Wind God. There are forty-nine Maruts.
matrihatya Matricide.
Matsya The Fish; Vishnu’s first Avatara.
maya Illusion; cosmic illusion.
Maya The Goddess of illusion.
Mayaa A great demon builder and king.
mayavi A sorcerer.
Mohini The Enchantress; Vishnu as a woman.
moksha Liberation; salvation; enlightenment.
moolabala Ravana’s crack legion, the principal source of his power.
mowna Silence.
mridanga A two-sided percussion instrument.
mudgara A weapon.
mudra A hand sign of occult power.
muhurta A small measure of time; especially, an auspicious moment.
muni A seer; rishi; also, silent one, knower of minds.
musth A male elephant’s season of rut.
naga A great serpent; also, a magical, serpentine being.
nagapasa An occult serpent noose.
nagina A female naga.
nairrita A race of otherworldly beings.
nakshatra Any of the twenty-seven asterisms in lunar Hindu astrology, considered stellar Goddesses and wives of the Moon.
nalika An astra.
Nandana Indra’s garden.
naracha A fiery missile.
Narada An ancient sage, the son of Brahma. He was said to have been born immaculately from Brahma’s thought.
naraka Hell.
Narasimha The Manticore; an incarnation of Vishnu.
Narayana The Sleeper on eternity’s waters, which are called the Naara; Vishnu.
Nilakanta The Blue-throat
ed One; Siva.
nilgai A species of deer.
nirvana Moksha; liberation.
nishada An untouchable.
nyagrodha The pipal tree.
OM The primal, holy syllable; AUM.
oshadhi A healing herb.
paapa A sin.
paasa A noose.
paativratya Fidelity.
padadhuli Dust—or a spiritual emanation—from an honored person’s feet.
padma A lotus.
padmaka A variety of tree.
Padmanabha Vishnu; “lotus-naveled.” Brahma is born in the lotus that sprouts from Vishnu’s navel.
padmasana The lotus posture.
paduka Sandals.
padya Water for washing the feet.
pala A variety of tree often inhabited by spirits.
palasa A variety of tree.
panchabhuta The five elements: earth, water, fire, air, and ether.
Panchajanya Vishnu’s conch shell.
Parabrahman Brahman The ultimate, undifferentiated Godhead.
Paramatman Supreme Soul; God.
Parasurama Bhargava The Ax-bearer; an incarnation of Vishnu.
parivrajaka A mendicant holy man.
Parvati Siva’s wife; “Mountain-daughter.”
Patala The underworld; netherworld.
pativrata A devoted wife.
paurnima, purnima The full moon.
payasa A liquid sweet.
pinda An offering to the dead, usually consisting of rice balls.
pipal A holy tree.
pisacha An evil spirit.
Pitama, Pitamaha Grandsire. Often used for Brahma.
pitr An ancestor; “father.”
Pitriloka The realm of the manes.
pradakshina A walking around a person or thing in reverence.
pragvamsa In this case, one end of a cross-beam.
Prajapati A lord of the first races of men.
pralaya The deluge.
prana Life breath.
Pranava AUM.
prayaschitta Penance.
prayatna A difficult endeavor.
prayopavesha A fasting for a cause or boon.
preta A spirit.
puja Ritual worship.
Punarvasu The asterism under which Rama was born.
punnaga A tree.
punya Virtue; merit.
Purushottama Vishnu; “best among men.”
Pushkara A lake sacred to Brahma.
pushpaka vimana A Kubera’s sky chariot, used by Ravana and later Rama.
Pushyami The asterism under which Bharata was born.
putrakama yagna A sacrifice for the birth of a son.
putrasneha Attachment or love for one’s children.
raga A traditional musical scale of at least five notes.
Raghuvamsa The clan of Raghu, an ancient king.
Rahu A demon; “dragon’s head.”
Rajarishi A royal seer; a king who is a sage.
rajasuya A great sacrifice of emperors.
raksha Protection; protective amulet.
rakshasa A demon.
rakshasi A demoness.
Ramarajya Rama’s rule.
ratha A chariot.
raudastra Rudra’s astra.
reeksha A bear.
rekha A line of power.
Rik Veda, Rig Veda The first Veda.
rishi A sage.
ritvik A priest.
Rohini An asterism and a Goddess, the Moon’s favorite wife.
Rudra Siva; also any of eleven fierce beings associated with Siva.
rudraksha Holy beads; “Siva’s tears/eyes.”
sabha Court; hall.
Sachi Indra’s consort.
Sadhya A minor divine being; a lesser God.
sakhi A female companion.
Sama A Veda.
samadhi Absorption in the Soul/God; mystical trance.
sambur A species of deer.
samsara The world of illusion.
sanatana dharma Eternal righteousness, justice.
Sanatkumara One of four original sages, born from Brahma’s mind.
sandhi Conjunction; cusp.
sandhya Twilight.
Sankara Siva.
sannyasa The condition of being a hermit.
sannyasi A hermit.
sannyasini A female sannyasi.
Saptarishi Seven sages born from Brahma’s mind.
sarabha A great mythical bird.
saras A lake.
sarasa A water bird.
Saraswati Goddess of learning; Brahma’s consort.
sarathy A charioteer.
Saringa Krishna’s bow.
satsangha Sacred, auspicious company.
Senapati General; “lord of the army.”
shakti Feminine power or weapon.
Shantam paapam “Evil, be still!”
Sharada Autumn.
Shastra Scripture.
shimshupa A kind of tree.
Shravana A lunar month between mid-July and mid-August.
siddha A self-realized being.
siddhi An occult power.
sirasasana A headstand as a yogic posture.
sishya A pupil; disciple.
Siva A God of the Hindu Trinity; the Destroyer.
sivalinga A phallic emblem of Siva.
sloka A sacred verse.
Soma The Moon God; also, lunar nectar.
srarddha A death ceremony.
sruti A tone or octave.
sruva A ladle.
stamba A post or pole.
sthula Gross; corporeal.
stotra Hymn.
Sudarshana chakra Vishnu’s weapon, a blazing wheel.
sudra A member of the fourth Hindu caste.
Sukra Venus, guru to the Asuras.
sukshma Subtle; incorporeal.
sumangali A fortunate wife.
Surya The Sun God.
Suryanamaskara A yogic ritual for worshipping the sun at dawn.
suta A bard.
swaapana A weapon of sleep and dreams.
swamini A woman swami or saint.
swapna A dream.
Swarga Heaven.
swayamvara The ceremony at which a princess chooses her own husband.
taala A rhythm; beat.
tamas The third and grossest guna, or essence, in nature.
tandava Siva’s dance of dissolution.
tantra vidya Black or occult arts.
tapasvin One who sits in tapasya.
tapasya A long period of penance, meditation, or austerity.
tapovana A grove of worship.
tarpana An offering of water for the dead.
tilaka An auspicious mark placed on the forehead.
timmingala A mythical whale-eating beast, possibly the giant squid.
tirtha Sacred place.
treta yuga The second great age.
trikalagyani One who sees the three times.
Trimurti The Hindu Trinity; Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva.
tripathaga Of three paths.
Tripura Three sky cities, built by Mayaa, which Siva brought down with a missile of fire.
trisula A trident.
Usanas The planet Venus; also, a male God, guru to the Asuras.
Uttara Phalguni One of the nakshatras or lunar asterisms.
vaastu shanti A rite for peace in a new dwelling.
vabdhi A singer, bard.
vabdya magadha Songs in praise of a king, with which he is awakened each morning.
vaidurya Lapis lazuli.
Vaikunta Vishnu’s celestial city.
vairagya Detachment.
vaisya A member of the third Hindu caste, the traders.
vajapeya A sacrifice.
vajra Indra’s thunderbolt.
valkala A fabric made of tree bark, worn by hermits.
Vamana The Dwarf; Vishnu’s fifth Avatara.
vana Jungle; forest.
vana devata A forest god.
vanara A member of an ancient, m
agical race of monkeys; “dweller in the vana.”
vandhi A singer, bard.
vanika Wood.
Varaha A boar; Vishnu’s third incarnation.
Varuna The God of the oceans.
vasantha Spring.
Vasu A class of Gods.
vayavyastra A wind weapon.
Veda Any of the four ancient collections of sacred Hindu prayers and hymns. There was originally only one Veda, which became four.
vedi, vedika An altar.
vetala A hunter.
vetali A huntress.
vidyadhara A magical being.
vikarni An astra.
vimana A sky ship.
vina An Indian stringed instrument, similar to a lute.
vina nadam The song of the vina.
vishalyakarani A potent herb of healing.
Vishnu A God of the Hindu Trinity; the Preserver.
Viswakarman The divine artisan.
vrata A vow
vyuha A battle formation.
yaama Yama’s astra.
yaga, yagna A sacrifice.
yagnapashu A sacrificial beast.
yagnashala An enclosure for a sacrifice.
yajaka One who undertakes a yagna.
Yajus Veda, Yajur Veda A Veda.
yaksha A forest spirit.
Tama The God of death.
yamala A tree.
yantra An occult symbol.
yatra A journey, often with religious significance.
yatudana A demonic being.
yoga “Union”; union with the Self, with God.
yogi, yogin One who, through yoga, is united with his higher Self or with God.
yogini A female yogi.
yojana A measure of distance; “league.”
yoni A vagina or vaginal emblem.
yuddha A war.
yuga An age.
yuganta, yugantara A conjunction of two ages; time of change.
yuga sandhi The cusp between two yugas.
yuvaraja A crown prince; heir apparent.
North Point Press
A division of Farrar, Straus and Giroux
18 West 18th Street, New York 10011
Copyright © 2001 by Ramesh Menon
Introduction copyright © 2003 by Ramesh Menon
All rights reserved
Originally published in 2001 by Writers Club Press, Lincoln, Nebraska, as The Ramayana: A Modern Translation
Published in 2003 by North Point Press
First North Point Press paperback edition, 2004
The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows:
Valmiki.
[Ramayana. English]
The Ramayana / Ramesh Menon.
p. cm.
Originally published: Lincoln, Nebraska : Writers Club Press, 2001.
ISBN 0-86547-660-8 (hc. : alk. paper)
I. Ramesh Menon. II. Title.
BL1139.22 .E54 2003
294.5'92204521—dc21
2002027896
Paperback ISBN-13: 978-0-86547-695-0
Paperback ISBN-10: 0-86547-695-0