Edited by Robert P. Goldman & Sheldon I. Pollock

List of abbreviations ix
Preface xv
Guide to Sanskrit Pronunciation xvii
Part I Introduction
1 The problem of the Aranyakanda 3
2 Summary of the Aranyakanda 7
3 The Ramayana: Myth or Romance? 10
4 The Divine King of the Ramayana 15
5 Rama's Madness 55
6 Raksasas and others 68
Part II Aranyakanda 85
Part III Notes 245
Glossary of Important Sanskrit Words, Proper Nouns and Epithets 359
Emendations and Corrections of the Critical Edition 363
Bibliography of Works Consulted 365
Index 379

This is the third volume of a planned seven-volume translation of India's most beloved and influential epic tale--the Ramayana of Valmiki. This third volume carries forward the narrative by following the exiled hero Rama, his wife, and his brother on their wanderings. The book contains the narrative center of the epic, the abduction of Sita by the demon king Ravana. It provides a profound meditation on the paradox of the hero as both human and divine.
The present translation seeks to provide a readable and trustworthy English version of the poem. It is accompanied by a full commentary elucidating the philological, aesthetic, and cultural problems of the text. Extensive use is made in the annotations of the numerous commentaries on the Ramayana. The substantial introduction to this volume aims to supply a historical context for an appreciation of the poem and a critical reading exploring the ideological components of the work.
The volumes of this work will present the entire Ramayana, translated for the first time on the basis of the critical edition (Oriental Institute, Baroda).