ShodhPatra: International Journal of Science and Humanities

The Krittivasi Ramayan: Re-imagining the Valmiki Ramayana as Sri Ram Panchali in Medieval Bengal

The Ramayana is one of the most popular, universally read, and widely circulated literary works by the great sage Valmiki. Through the expansive reach of his imagination and the natural vigor of his language, Valmiki elevated the Ramayana to the status of an epic. Valmiki’s poetic strength is vast, his imagination grand, and his perspective universal. The poets of different languages in India adorned Valmiki’s Sanskrit Ramayana with the vibrancy of their own indigenous languages and cultures. A significant number of such versions trace their roots to Bengal. The epic was first translated into the Bengali language by the great poet Krittibas Ojha in the fifteenth century CE. Its influences and popularity have been such as to justify it being called the Bible of the people of Bengal. The Krittivasi Ramayan was instrumental in spreading Rama worship throughout Bengal. By making the story of Ramachandra accessible in the mother tongue, by translating the epic into accessible Middle Bengali, Krittibas Ojha moved away from the rigid rituals of Sanskrit orthodoxy. This shift mirrored the broader Bhakti movement, which prioritized heartfelt, personal devotion over complex traditional ceremonies. The poet immortalized the Bengali version of the Ramayana in such a manner that the people of Bengal, of all ages to come, would be able to find solace in grief, tranquility in anxiety, and restraint in enjoyment. This paper intends to delve into how Krittibas bridged the gap between ancient scripture and the common person, leaving a legacy for which Bengali society remains deeply indebted.