Ramayana Sculptures from Hampi Vijayanagara
The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and its influence on the life of Indian people has been great and immeasurable. The ideals of the Ramayana have gone deep into the core of Indian life and have largely molded its social, political, and cultural fabric and eternal history of India. Rama is an ideal hero and the Ramayana describes his character as unparalleled in human history.
During the Vijayanagara period, many poets ad scholars translated the Ramayana into the Kannada language. The most important work in Kannada on the Ramayana theme is the Ramakatha of Narahari, datable to circa 1580 1600, based upon the Valmiki's Ramayana. He lived in the village temples at Pattadakal