No laughing in Ram Rajya

Published on 5th June, 2016, in Mid-Day. In the 15th century, a Sanskrit treatise came to be written known as the Anand Ramayana (Ramayana of bliss). The author did not reveal his name and claimed it was the work of Valmiki, the original re-teller of the Ramayana. It was composed to compensate for the inadequacies of the earlier Shok Ramayana (Ramayana of sorrow), full of separation and loneliness. In Anand Ramayana, a lot of attention is given to the glories of Ram's rule, the Ram Rajya. In one story, Ram hears a courtier laugh and is reminded of Ravan's laughter, during the battle at Lanka ..