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How do you respond when life hands you an assignment--a change of plans, one you did not initiate? You think you know what you're going to be doing for the next hour, or afternoon, or week, or year, but then your car doesn't start, or you have to pump out the flood in your basement, or move to another town to take care of an aging parent. My first response is usually a version of "I don't have time for this." Sometimes it's my second and third response, too.
Such is not the case with the hero of the Ramayana. As the oldest son of the king, Rama is about to take the throne. His father, mother, and younger brothers love him; the people adore him and have exuberantly decorated the city for what promises to be a joyous ceremony of coronation. Rama's unexpected assignment comes in the form of a betrayal by his stepmother. She wants her son to be king and, calling on a boon the king had promised years earlier, insists that Rama be exiled to the forest for fourteen years. On the morning of his coronation, Rama is informed he must instead go to the forest, away from his family and friends, where hardship seems a certainty. People weep in the streets; his father is sick with grief. "When everything was ready, God upset the whole plan!"
This change of plans seems a disaster to everyone but Rama. The model of heroism, he welcomes the most daunting challenges and obstacles with courage and composure. He never loses heart. As the Ramayana unfolds, what had seemed an unfortunate turn of events allows Rama to fulfill his divine mission to purify the world of ignorance and negativity. Unfathomable is the ebb and flow of events. . . our own lives continually demonstrate that unwelcome news may bring out our greatest strengths, transform us in unexpected ways. The Ramayana is the epic expression of these inexorable forces.
Rich with heroic ideals, archetypal characters, and subtlety of experience, the Ramayana has it all--love and devotion, good versus evil, the challenges of war, and the secrets of enlightened life. A classic of world and Vedic literature, the Ramayana has inspired millions of people for generations.
Captivated by these qualities of the Ramayana, Fairfield producer Michael Sternfeld began exploring this epic tale, first in a theatrical production with Maharishi School students which was performed in 1993. Then, in 1995 and 1996 he created the Hero's Quest Adventure, a kind of low-tech theme park in which more than 300 children re-enacted adventures from the Ramayana. When he found that there has never been an unabridged recording of the Ramayana, the desire to create one took root in his heart. He formed an audio production company--Vedic Audio Knowledge (VAK)--and the result is the first audio recording of the unabridged Ramayana of Valmiki.
Sternfeld wanted to record the unabridged version because the Ramayana promises great blessings will flow in the life of anyone who reads or listens to the epic from beginning to end. Since the Ramayana is one of the longest books ever written, most people read abridged versions which leave out profound details from every chapter.
For its depth and clarity, he chose a translation by renowned Indian journalist N. Raghunathan. Next, he sought a reader who could give voice to the expansive consciousness that created the Ramayana. He found Richard Ross, a member of the Purusha program at the Spiritual Center of America in North Carolina, and took his project there.
"I have always loved great adventures and recording the Ramayana certainly proved to be one," says Sternfeld. "It was no surprise that, as we recorded the Ramayana, our lives seemed to parallel its unfolding story. It was a powerful, challenging experience."
A great storyteller, Ross's vocal characterizations bring this epic classic to life. "Rama embodies the fully developed, fully integrated state of life," he says. "As I played the various characters, each of whom has a unique relationship with Rama, I noticed a restructuring of different areas of my life. The results were then, and continue to be now, more integration, more wholeness. Now I know first hand why Maharishi recommends reading the Vedic literature."
Now, a year and a half later, thanks to an idea that wouldn't let go, and to Sternfeld's acceptance of this call to adventure, the first of three volumes has been recorded and we can listen to a beautiful reading of this masterpiece.
