A. Who Is Who

Agastya. A powerful sage of the southern forest. He gave Rama a bow, arrows, and a sword before the years at Panchavati, and later, at Ayodhya, told Rama the long retrospective history of Ravana's family, from the first rakshasa lords of Lanka through Ravana's birth, boon, and conquests. He also told Rama the older stories of Shveta and of Danda's kingdom. First appears: Chapter 5.

Ahalya. Wife of the sage Gautama. While Gautama was away, Indra came to her in her husband's form; Gautama cursed her to remain unseen in their hermitage for many years, living on air, until Rama's touch and welcome as a guest ended the curse. First appears: Chapter 6.

Anaranya. An aged king of Ayodhya's own line, defeated and struck down by Ravana during his campaign against the world's kings. Dying, he declared that a king of the Ikshvaku line would one day kill Ravana, a prophecy the book later fulfills through Rama. First appears: Chapter 61.

Angada, son of Vali. A vanara prince, son of Vali and Tara. After his father's death he became Sugriva's heir, led the southern search party for Sita with Hanuman and Jambavan, and fought through the war at Lanka, including as Rama's envoy to Ravana's court. First appears: Chapter 29.

Angada, son of Lakshmana. A different person from the vanara prince of the same name. He was one of Lakshmana's two sons; Rama later gave him a city called Angadiya to rule. First appears: Chapter 111.

Arja. Daughter of the sage Ushanasa, assaulted by King Danda in his teacher's hermitage. Her father's curse in response destroyed Danda's kingdom and turned it into the wilderness later called Dandaka forest. First appears: Chapter 96.

Bharadvaja. A sage whose forest hermitage stood near the Ganga. He welcomed Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana at the start of their exile and directed them toward Chitrakuta, and later welcomed Rama's whole company on the journey home from Lanka. First appears: Chapter 17.

Bharata. Second son of Dasharatha, born to Kaikeyi. When his mother's demand sent Rama into exile and made Bharata heir in his place, he refused the throne, denounced what had been done, and governed only as a caretaker from Nandigrama, ruling in the name of Rama's sandals until Rama's return. First appears: Chapter 2.

Budha. Son of the moon god Soma. While performing austerity in a lake, he met Ila during her month as a woman, fathered her son Pururavas, and later helped gather the sages who arranged the sacrifice that restored Ila's permanent male form. First appears: Chapter 100.

Chyavana. A rishi of the Bhargava line who led the company of ascetics from the Yamuna asking Rama's protection from the rakshasa Lavana. He later told Shatrughna the story of the king Mandhata's failed attack on Lavana before Shatrughna's own fight with him. First appears: Chapter 81.

Danda. Youngest of Ikshvaku's hundred sons, given a kingdom of his own. His assault on Arja, the sage Ushanasa's daughter, brought a curse that destroyed his entire realm in a storm of dust, leaving behind the wilderness later known as Dandaka forest. First appears: Chapter 95.

Dashagriva. See Ravana.

Dasharatha. King of Ayodhya and father of Rama, Bharata, Lakshmana, and Shatrughna. Bound by an old promise to Kaikeyi, he sent Rama into fourteen years of exile and died of grief soon afterward. First appears: Chapter 1.

Dhanada. See Kubera.

Durvasa. A severe rishi, quick to curse when made to wait. Long before, he foretold to Dasharatha that Rama would one day abandon Sita and, still later, his brothers as well; at the very end of the book, his sudden demand for an audience forced Lakshmana to interrupt Rama's private meeting with Time, setting in motion Lakshmana's own departure from the world. First appears: Chapter 81.

Dushana. A rakshasa commander under Khara at Janasthana. He led forces against Rama at Panchavati after Shurpanakha's mutilation and was killed by Rama in the battle that followed. First appears: Chapter 23.

Garuda. A great eagle being, hostile to serpents. When Indrajit bound Rama and Lakshmana with serpent-weapons during the war at Lanka, Garuda's presence loosened the coils and let the brothers rise again. First appears: Chapter 38.

Gautama. A sage, husband of Ahalya. He cursed Indra and Ahalya after discovering Indra's deception, then later returned to his hermitage and was reunited with Ahalya once Rama's visit had ended her long punishment. First appears: Chapter 6.

Guha. Ruler of the Nishadas, a river and forest community, at Shringaverapura on the Ganga. He welcomed Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana at the start of their exile, kept watch with Lakshmana through the night, and later helped Bharata's search party cross the river in peace. First appears: Chapter 17.

Hanuman. A vanara of extraordinary strength, called the Son of the Wind; his father was the vanara king Kesari, his mother Anjana, and Vayu the wind god his divine father. As an infant he leapt toward the sun, mistaking it and later the god Indra's elephant for fruit, and was struck down by Indra's thunderbolt, an injury that gave him his name and drew him many protective gifts from the gods. As Sugriva's counsellor he found Rama and Lakshmana at Pampa, crossed the ocean alone to find Sita in Lanka, killed Ravana's son Aksha in the fighting there, was captured and set alight by Ravana's court, and burned part of the city before escaping. He later carried a whole mountain of healing herbs to save the wounded Lakshmana. First appears: Chapter 28.

Ila. A king, child of Kardama, whose hunt disturbed a mountain where Shiva had taken female form to please Uma; every creature there, Ila included, became female. Living afterward as a woman for one month and a man for the next, with no memory bridging the two, Ila bore Budha a son, Pururavas, before a horse sacrifice to Shiva finally restored permanent male form. First appears: Chapter 99.

Indrajit. Ravana's son, born Meghanada; he earned the name Indrajit, "conqueror of Indra," after capturing the king of the gods in battle. In the war at Lanka he bound Rama and Lakshmana with serpent-weapons, staged a false killing of Sita to break the allies' morale, and was finally killed by Lakshmana at the ritual ground of Nikumbhila. First appears: Chapter 36.

Jabali. One of the sages named at Rama's court; he sat among the eight sages Narada joined in council after a child's untimely death, and later among the priests summoned for the horse sacrifice and the assembly that witnessed Sita's final oath. First appears: Chapter 91.

Jambavan. An elder bear hero among Rama's allies. He led the southern search party for Sita alongside Angada and Hanuman, and it was his reminder at the shore that helped Hanuman recall the full extent of his own strength before the leap to Lanka. First appears: Chapter 31.

Janaka. King of Mithila and father of Sita, whom he found as an infant in a furrow while plowing a field. He kept a divine bow no suitor could string as the condition for Sita's marriage, and gave her to Rama after Rama broke it. First appears: Chapter 5.

Janaki. See Sita.

Jatayu. An aged vulture king, friend of Dasharatha, who promised Rama he would watch over Sita at Panchavati. He fought Ravana in the sky to stop Sita's abduction, was mortally wounded, and lived only long enough to tell Rama and Lakshmana who had taken her and in which direction. First appears: Chapter 22.

Kabandha. A cursed being with a huge trunk-like body and a single eye, encountered by Rama and Lakshmana in the forest after Sita's abduction. Freed from his monstrous form by the brothers and restored to his true shape, he directed them to seek Sugriva's alliance and to visit Shabari. First appears: Chapter 27.

Kaikasi. Mother of Ravana, Kumbhakarna, Shurpanakha, and Vibhishana, daughter of the rakshasa Sumali. Sent by her father to seek a powerful husband, she bore Vishrava's sons at a fierce hour, which the sage said would make them fierce in turn. First appears: Chapter 24.

Kaikeyi. One of Dasharatha's three queens, mother of Bharata. Persuaded by her attendant Manthara, she claimed two old promises from Dasharatha to have Bharata made heir and Rama sent into fourteen years of exile. First appears: Chapter 1.

Kashyapa. A sage named repeatedly at Rama's court and in its rituals: Parashurama gave him the earth he had won by conquest, and he later sat among the sages who advised Rama's council, the priests of the horse sacrifice, and the assembly that heard Sita's final oath. First appears: Chapter 10.

Kausalya. Dasharatha's chief queen and Rama's mother. She performed the ritual killing of the sacrificial horse at Dasharatha's great rite, grieved deeply when Rama was exiled, and comforted Bharata when he returned in shock and anger at his mother's demand. First appears: Chapter 1.

Khara. A rakshasa commander at Janasthana, cousin to Shurpanakha. After she was mutilated by Lakshmana, Khara sent forces against Rama, then led his own army, including a lieutenant called Trishiras, "Three Headed," and was finally killed by Rama himself. First appears: Chapter 23.

Kubera. Also called Vaishravana (marking him as the son of Vishrava) and Dhanada. He is the guardian deity of wealth and Ravana's half-brother, who first ruled Lanka and possessed the flying vehicle Pushpaka before Ravana took both the city and the vehicle from him by force. Pushpaka is finally sent back to him after Ravana's death. First appears: Chapter 24.

Kumbhakarna. Ravana's brother, vast in size and appetite, whose request for many years of sleep was placed in his mouth by the gods, fearful of what he might otherwise ask Brahma to grant. Woken to defend Lanka, he rebuked Ravana for the wrong he had done before fighting anyway, and was killed by Rama. First appears: Chapter 23.

Kumbhinasī. A woman of Ravana's extended family, daughter of the gandharva Vishvavasu, carried off by the rakshasa Madhu; she became his wife and the mother of Lavana. When Ravana came to kill Madhu in revenge, her plea for her husband's life turned him instead into an ally. First appears: Chapter 66.

Kusha. One of the twin sons born to Sita at Valmiki's hermitage; his brother was Lava. Raised and taught by Valmiki, he sang the story of his own parents' lives before Rama's court without at first revealing who he was. A courtier of the same name is listed once among Rama's companions in Chapter 78; he is a different, minor person. First appears: Chapter 85.

Lakshmana. Third son of Dasharatha, born to Sumitra, and Rama's closest companion from childhood. He followed Rama and Sita into exile, fought beside Rama through the war at Lanka, killed Indrajit, and at the very end of the book kept a fatal vow at Rama's door rather than let a curse fall on the kingdom, a choice that led to his own departure from the world. First appears: Chapter 2.

Lankini. The guardian spirit of the gate of Lanka, a rakshasi who challenged Hanuman when he first entered the city. He struck her down; an old warning had said Lanka's ruin would begin when a vanara overcame her. First appears: Chapter 33.

Lava. One of the twin sons born to Sita at Valmiki's hermitage; his brother was Kusha. He sang, with Kusha, the story of Rama's life before Rama's own court at the horse sacrifice. First appears: Chapter 85.

Lavana. A rakshasa, son of Madhu, who terrorized the hermitages near the Yamuna with a trident given by Rudra that made him unbeatable once he held it. Shatrughna killed him at his own gate before he could take up the weapon, then founded the city of Madhura on the cleared land. First appears: Chapter 82.

Madhu. A powerful rakshasa, father of Lavana, husband of Kumbhinasī, who once held a trident from Rudra that could not be defeated in his son's hand. Ravana marched to kill him in revenge for Kumbhinasī's abduction but spared him and made him an ally instead. A much older being also called Madhu, destroyed by Vishnu before the world's creation, is a different figure, referred to only through the epithet Madhusudana. First appears: Chapter 66.

Mandavi. Daughter of Kushadhvaja, king of Sankashya and Janaka's younger brother, and Bharata's wife, married to him on the same day as Rama and Sita. This Kushadhvaja is a different person from the rishi Kushadhvaja who was Vedavati's father. First appears: Chapter 9.

Mandodari. Ravana's wife, daughter of the danava craftsman Maya and the apsara Hema. She mourned openly over Ravana's body after his death in the war. First appears: Chapter 45.

Manthara. A kinswoman-attendant of Kaikeyi's household. Her warning and persuasion turned Kaikeyi's joy at Rama's coming installation into fear for Bharata's future, leading Kaikeyi to claim the two promises that sent Rama into exile. First appears: Chapter 12.

Maricha. A rakshasa, son of the yakshi Tataka. Struck once by one of Rama's arrows at Vishvamitra's rite and hurled across the sea, he later warned Ravana against attacking Rama, but was forced under threat of death to take the form of a golden deer to lure Rama away from Sita, and was killed by him. First appears: Chapter 4.

Marutta. A king whose sacrifice, guided by the sage Samvarta, was interrupted by Ravana; bound by the rite, Marutta could not fight him. The same Marutta, named again as Samvarta's disciple, carries out the horse sacrifice that restores Ila's male form, in a story set generations earlier. See section J. First appears: Chapter 60.

Matali. Indra's charioteer, sent with a celestial chariot to carry Rama in his final duel with Ravana. First appears: Chapter 44.

Meghanada. See Indrajit.

Nala. A vanara born of the divine craftsman Vishvakarma, skilled in building. He directed the construction of the bridge across the ocean to Lanka. First appears: Chapter 37.

Nandi. Shiva's attendant, with a simian face, who guarded the mountain Kailasa when Ravana tried to pass. When Ravana mocked his form, Nandi warned that beings of a similar form would one day arise for the destruction of Ravana's line. The curse is mentioned in passing in Chapter 24 and told in full in Chapter 58. First appears: Chapter 24.

Narada. A wandering rishi who moves freely among royal courts, forests, and the realms of gods. He warned Yama that Ravana was coming to challenge him, and later, at Rama's court, explained the ages of the world and identified the ascetic Shambuka's unlawful practice as the cause of a child's untimely death. First appears: Chapter 61.

Parashurama. A warrior-sage of the Bhargava line, son of Jamadagni, famous for his past war against the kshatriya order. He challenged the young Rama to string a second divine bow soon after the wedding at Mithila, recognized Vishnu in him, and yielded without a fight. First appears: Chapter 10.

Prahasta. One of Ravana's ministers and commanders. He carried Ravana's demand for Lanka to Vaishravana, fought at the assault on Kailasa and in Indra's realm, and was struck down by the king Kartavirya Arjuna during Ravana's campaign against him. First appears: Chapter 53.

Pulastya. An ancient sage, ancestor of Ravana's line and grandfather of Vishrava. Later in the book he intervenes with the king Kartavirya Arjuna to secure Ravana's release after Ravana's defeat and capture. First appears: Chapter 4.

Pururavas. Son of Ila and Budha, born during Ila's months as a woman; he later succeeded his father as king at the city of Pratishthana. A Pururavas is also listed briefly among rulers who told Ravana they had been overcome by him, in a generation far later than his own. Nothing says whether the two are one man. See section J. First appears: Chapter 61.

Rama. Eldest son of Dasharatha and Kausalya, and the book's central figure, understood to be a human birth of the god Vishnu. He wins Sita's hand by breaking Shiva's bow, is sent into fourteen years of exile by Kaikeyi's demand, loses Sita to Ravana and wins her back through the war at Lanka, rules Ayodhya afterward, and near the end of the book returns to Vishnu's form by walking into the Sarayu river. First appears: Chapter 2.

Ravana. King of Lanka and lord of the rakshasas, born Dashagriva, "the ten-necked one," and later given the name Ravana by Shiva after his cry of pain at Kailasa was heard across the three worlds. Protected by a boon from Brahma that excluded only human beings, he abducted Sita, provoking the war in which Rama finally killed him. First appears: Chapter 2.

Rishyasringa. An ascetic, son of the forest sage Vibhandaka, raised apart from ordinary human life. Brought to King Romapada's kingdom to end a drought, he married Romapada's daughter Shanta, and later performed the rites at Ayodhya through which Dasharatha's four sons were born. First appears: Chapter 2.

Sampati. Jatayu's older brother, an aged vulture king who lost the use of his wings shielding Jatayu from the sun's heat in their youth. His far sight told the southern search party that Ravana had carried Sita to Lanka, and his wings began to grow back as he spoke. First appears: Chapter 22.

Sarama, rakshasi friend of Sita. A rakshasi who became Sita's friend while she was held captive in Ashoka Vatika. She learned that Indrajit's apparent killing of Sita during the war was a deception and brought Sita word that Rama's forces had crossed to Lanka. A different Sarama, daughter of a gandharva king, is Vibhishana's wife. First appears: Chapter 40.

Sarama, Vibhishana's wife. Daughter of Shailusha, king of the gandharvas, given in marriage to Vibhishana. She is a different person from the rakshasi Sarama who befriended Sita in captivity. First appears: Chapter 54.

Shabari. An aged ascetic woman who kept the hermitage of the sage Matanga after her teachers had died. She welcomed Rama and Lakshmana with great care, pointed them toward Pampa and Sugriva, and then entered fire to end her own long life of service. First appears: Chapter 27.

Shambuka. A man of Shudra birth found performing severe austerity in order to attain divinity in his own body, a practice Narada identified as the cause of a brahmin child's untimely death in Rama's kingdom. Rama killed him, and the dead child was restored to life at once. First appears: Chapter 93.

Shanta. Daughter of King Romapada of Anga, given in marriage to Rishyasringa; the two of them together are the reason his rites at Ayodhya became possible. First appears: Chapter 2.

Shatananda. Priest of King Janaka and son of Gautama and Ahalya. He told Rama and Lakshmana the long story of Vishvamitra's earlier life as a king who won spiritual authority through years of hardship. First appears: Chapter 7.

Shatrughna. Fourth son of Dasharatha, born to Sumitra, twin brother of Lakshmana in age though paired closely in affection with Bharata. He killed the rakshasa Lavana, founded the city of Madhura, and much later followed Rama into the Sarayu at the book's end. First appears: Chapter 2.

Shurpanakha. Sister of Ravana, Kumbhakarna, and Vibhishana, married once to a rakshasa leader named Vidyujjihva, whom Ravana accidentally killed in battle. Her desire for Rama at Panchavati and the mutilation Lakshmana inflicted on her set off the chain of events leading to Sita's abduction. First appears: Chapter 23.

Sita. Daughter of King Janaka, found as an infant in a plowed furrow, and Rama's wife. Abducted by Ravana and held in Lanka, she was rescued after the war, proved her faithfulness through fire, was later abandoned by Rama because of public gossip while pregnant with twins, raised her sons Lava and Kusha at Valmiki's hermitage, and finally chose to leave the world of the living by an oath that opened the earth beneath her. She is also called Janaki, "daughter of Janaka." First appears: Chapter 7.

Subahu, the rakshasa. One of two rakshasas, with Maricha, who disrupted Vishvamitra's sacred rite; Rama killed him with the Agneya weapon. A different Subahu, Shatrughna's son, later becomes ruler of Madhura. First appears: Chapter 4.

Subahu, Shatrughna's son. Installed as ruler of Madhura when Shatrughna followed Rama at the end of the book. He is a different person from the rakshasa Subahu killed by Rama early in the story. First appears: Chapter 114.

Sugriva. A vanara prince, younger brother of Vali, driven from Kishkindha and from his wife Ruma when Vali mistook his actions for treachery. He allied with Rama, who helped him kill Vali and take the throne, then organized the search that found Sita. First appears: Chapter 27.

Sumantra. Dasharatha's minister and charioteer, and later Rama's. He drove Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana out of Ayodhya at the start of the exile and, much later, drove the chariot that carried Sita to Valmiki's hermitage. First appears: Chapter 1.

Sumitra. One of Dasharatha's three queens, mother of Lakshmana and Shatrughna. First appears: Chapter 1.

Sushena. A vanara physician among Sugriva's allies. He treated Lakshmana after Ravana's spear struck him down and directed Hanuman to the mountain of healing herbs in the north. First appears: Chapter 40.

Tara. Wife of Vali and mother of Angada. She warned Vali against fighting Sugriva a second time, and after Vali's death she remained in Kishkindha under Sugriva's protection. First appears: Chapter 29.

Trijata. An older rakshasi guarding Sita in Ashoka Vatika. Her dream of Rama's victory and Ravana's fall calmed the other guards who had been pressing Sita to submit. First appears: Chapter 34.

Urmila. Daughter of Janaka and Sita's sister, married to Lakshmana on the same day as Rama and Sita. She remained in Ayodhya through Lakshmana's exile and war. First appears: Chapter 9.

Ushanasa. A learned teacher named twice in the book: as the priest presiding over the young Meghanada's sacrifices in Lanka, and, in an older story Agastya told, as the priest of King Danda and father of Arja. The book does not say whether these are the same person. First appears: Chapter 66.

Vaishravana. See Kubera.

Vali. King of the vanaras at Kishkindha, elder brother of Sugriva. After a misunderstanding at a sealed cave, he drove Sugriva out and took his wife Ruma into his own household; he was killed by Rama's hidden arrow during a fight with Sugriva. First appears: Chapter 28.

Valmiki. A rishi and old friend of Dasharatha, at whose hermitage beyond the Ganga the abandoned Sita took refuge and raised her twin sons Lava and Kusha. He composed the verses of Rama's life that the boys sang before Rama's court, and testified publicly to Sita's innocence at the horse sacrifice. First appears: Chapter 79.

Vamadeva. A senior sage at Dasharatha's and later Rama's court, named alongside Vashishta in matters of royal ritual and counsel. First appears: Chapter 1.

Vashishta. The royal priest of Ayodhya, senior in ritual and sacred learning to both Dasharatha and Rama. He guided Dasharatha's decision to let Rama go with Vishvamitra, performed Dasharatha's funeral rites, and directed Rama's own consecration as king. First appears: Chapter 1.

Vedavati. A woman practicing austerity in the Himalaya, daughter of the rishi Kushadhvaja (a different person from the King Kushadhvaja who was Janaka's brother), who had devoted herself to becoming Vishnu's wife. Assaulted by Ravana, she entered fire and declared she would be born again for his destruction; Agastya identifies her as Sita in an earlier life. First appears: Chapter 59.

Vibhishana. Youngest brother of Ravana, devoted to dharma from his upbringing. He urged Ravana to return Sita, was driven from Lanka for the counsel, joined Rama's side, and was installed as king of Lanka after Ravana's death. First appears: Chapter 23.

Viradha. A rakshasa who seized Sita and demanded her as his wife soon after the exiles entered Dandaka forest. Rama and Lakshmana broke his arms and learned he was under a curse; they buried him as he asked, and he was freed from his monstrous form. First appears: Chapter 21.

Vishrava. Father of Ravana, Kumbhakarna, Shurpanakha, and Vibhishana, and, by an earlier marriage, of Vaishravana (Kubera). Son of the sage Pulastya. First appears: Chapter 24.

Vishvamitra. A sage and former king who won the rank of brahmarshi through great austerity. He took the young Rama and Lakshmana from Ayodhya to defend his sacred rites from rakshasas, gave Rama sacred weapon-knowledge, and brought the brothers to Mithila, where Rama won Sita by breaking Shiva's bow. First appears: Chapter 4.