Echoes of Ramayana: Epic Journeys Beyond India

#1 Ramakien (Thailand): The Ramakien, often referred to as the Thai Ramayana, is a Thai adaptation of the epic. It retains the core narrative of the Indian Ramayana but incorporates local Thai culture, folklore, and beliefs. The Thai version places more emphasis on the character of Hanuman and showcases his wit and loyalty in a …

Part 7 – Conclusion | A Time-Travel to My Land’s History #series

The inscriptions on each of the stones and rocks destroyed seemed as if these were some messages, some important codes, to be passed onto the next generations. It felt as if this incomplete creation has a story to be completed.  An unheard and unknown story of a forgotten era; we are to understand here the …

Part 6 – Time Travelling at The National Museum, Delhi | A Time-Travel to My Land’s History #series

I knew nothing about the NATIONAL MUSEUM; hence I went with an empty cup; and I found myself time travelling right from the museum entrance. Upon every excavation I saw, I heard my mother's history lessons ringing in my ears. "...the ancient India was advanced in every way - science, technology, arts, culture, polity...WE HAD …

Part 5 – To the Land of Mathuraadhipathi | A Time-Travel to My Land’s History #series

The most awaited part of the Delhi Darshan was this visit to the city of my Hero. I call him, the Hero of heroes, the Adhipathi (meaning Lord) of Mathura, Lord Sree Krishna. I don’t know, since when I knew Sree Krishna and Sree Rama. The stories that I heard since the time I crawled …

Part 4 – The “Love” That Is Unspoken; About That “Symbol of Love”, Named “Taj Mahal” | A Time-Travel to My Land’s History #series

As we approached the Taj Mahal, our tour guide quoted the words of Bill Clinton that there are two kinds of people in the world; those who have seen the Taj Mahal and those who haven’t. However, until my first view of the Taj, it was a monument, which I looked down upon with utter …

Part 3 – Messages of The Monuments | A Time-Travel to My Land’s History #series

It is said that monuments are the grappling-irons that bind one generation to another. The prominent of the monuments visited was the Humayun’s Tomb and Qutub Minar. Humayun's tomb is the tomb of the Mughal Emperor Humayun in Delhi, India. It also enclosed the tombs of many other princes, the royal barber and other officers …

Part 2 – Folded Hands at The Amar Jawan Jyoti | A Time-Travel to My Land’s History #series

It was a dream since my third standard, to come to this iconic war memorial, located at the eastern end of the Kingsway or Rajpath. From the pictures in my social studies textbooks of this arch gate to the parade scenes and movies, to this real Amar Jawan Jyoti darshan, it took about 19 years. …

Part 1 – Introduction | A Time-Travel to My Land’s History #series

For me, visiting historical monument sites of national importance is like a long-awaited meeting with a best friend whom you have never met before. The NCERT textbooks and the Encarta Encyclopedia made me fall in love with each of these places. However, while penning down a travelogue, what more can I say about these places …