Forty-four years ago Yuri Gagarin became the first man to go into orbit. But perhaps the Soviet Union didn’t win the space race after all? openDemocracy’s second “Image of the week” looks to the Ramayana.
Ravana visits the moon, illustration from the Ramayana, Udaipur, 1653
“Ravana, the ten-headed demon king, ascends higher and higher, travelling past the source of the Ganges, where elephants frolic in sacred waters. Two garudas (man-bird deities) and two birds approach from the left, indicating the aerial realms that Ravana traverses. The moon is symbolically shown on the right and the steel-grey background represents its icy climate. Brahma, creator of the universe, intervenes and begs Ravana to turn back.”
With thanks to the British Library
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