Rama

**Ram** (Devanagari:राम) also known as **Ramchandra** (Devanagari: रामचन्द्र or रामचंद्र) is known as the avatar of Lord Vishnu in Hinduism. In Valmiki Ramayana, he was the son of Dasharatha. Rama's character is the Divine protagonist of Epic Ramayana. 

Rama is said to have been born to Kaushalya and Dasharatha in Ayodhya, the ruler of the Kingdom of Kosala. His siblings included Lakshmana, Bharata, and Shatrughna. He married Sita. Though born in a royal family, their life is described in the Hindu texts as one challenged by unexpected changes such as an exile into impoverished and difficult circumstances, ethical questions and moral dilemmas.

Rama is especially important to Vaishnavism. He is the central figure of the ancient Hindu epic *Ramayana*, a text historically popular in the South Asian and Southeast Asian cultures. His ancient legends have attracted bhasya (commentaries) and extensive secondary literature and inspired performance arts. Two such texts, for example, are the *Adhyatma Ramayana* – a spiritual and theological treatise considered foundational by Ramanandi monasteries, and the *Ramcharitmanas* – a popular treatise that inspires thousands of Ramlila festival performances during autumn every year in India.

Rama legends are also found in the texts of Jainism and Buddhism, though he is sometimes called Pauma or Padma in these texts, and their details vary significantly from the Hindu versions. Jain Texts also mentioned Rama as the eighth balabhadra among the 63 salakapurusas. In Sikhism, Rama is mentioned as one of twenty four divine incarnations of Vishnu in the Chaubis Avtar in *Dasam Granth.*

*Rama* as a first name appears in the Vedic literature, associated with two patronymic names – Margaveya and Aupatasvini – representing different individuals. A third individual named *Rama Jamadagnya* is the purported author of hymn 10.110 of the *Rigveda* in the Hindu tradition. or *Dasarathi* (son of Dasaratha), or *Raghava* (descendant of Raghu, solar dynasty in Hindu cosmology). He is also known as Ram Lalla *(Infant form of Rama)*.

Additional names of Rama include *Ramavijaya* (Javanese), *Phreah Ream* (Khmer), *Phra Ram* (Lao and Thai), *Megat Seri Rama* (Malay), *Raja Bantugan* (Maranao), *Ramudu* (Telugu), *Ramar* (Tamil). In the *Vishnu sahasranama*, Rama is the 394th name of Vishnu. In some Advaita Vedanta inspired texts, Rama connotes the metaphysical concept of Supreme Brahman who is the eternally blissful spiritual Self (Atman, soul) in whom yogis delight nondualistically.

The root of the word *Rama* is *ram-* which means "stop, stand still, rest, rejoice, be pleased". The sense of "dark, black, soot" also appears in other Indo European languages, such as **remos* or Old English *romig*.

## Ram Mandir ("Rama Temple")
The **Ram Mandir** (lit. 'Rama Temple') is a Hindu temple in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, India. Many Hindus believe that it is located at the site of Ram Janmabhoomi, the mythical birthplace of Rama, a principal deity of Hinduism.

## Legends
This summary is a traditional legendary account, based on literary details from the *Ramayana* and other historic mythology-containing texts of Buddhism and Jainism. According to Sheldon Pollock, the figure of Rama incorporates more ancient "morphemes of Indian myths", such as the mythical legends of *Bali* and *Namuci*. The ancient sage Valmiki used these morphemes in his *Ramayana* similes as in sections 3.27, 3.59, 3.73, 5.19 and 29.28.

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*  He has been depicted in many films, television shows and plays.

## Related pages
* Hindu philosophy
* Ramayana
* Vaishnavism
* Ram Mandir
* Religion in India

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