About the Book: Maryada: Searching for Dharma in the Ramayana
What does it mean to be good?
Maryada is a commonly used word for boundary in Sanskrit which also means
propriety of conduct. In the context of the Ramayana, the word carries special
weight because it comes to be used as the defining virtue of Rama, the maryada
purushottama. But despite the fact that Rama is regarded as the epitome of
dharma in his thoughts and deeds, the Ramayana does not provide us with one
single template for right action. Nor does it tell us that dharma is beyond the
reach of human understanding and