Life in Kerala, especially in Hindu homes, will become sedate for the next 32 days from 16th July 2024. The day marks the beginning of Malayalam month Karkkadaka (in synch with the month of Sravan) and Hindu homes and temples in the State would reverberate with  "SreeRama, Rama! Rama!, SreeRamachandra! Jaya, SreeRama!Rama!Rama! Sree Rama bhadra! Jaya.." the lyrics from Adhyatma Ramayana, a version of the great Indian epic Valmiki Ramayana.

Every morning or evening, the family patriarch or the eldest member of the family recites the chapters from the epic and explain to the next generation the meaning of what has been written in Ramayana.

Though there are Rama Charita Manas and Valmiki Ramayana, the Keralites follow the Adhyatma Ramayana, believed to have been composed during the 13th century. What makes Adhyatma Ramayana different from Valmiki Ramayana is its portrayal of Lord Rama as God incarnation. The Valmiki Ramayana characterizes the Lord as an ordinary human being.

According to Adhyatma Ramayana, Lord Rama was born in the month of Karkkadaka with Punarvasu as his birth star. Saroj Bala, an Indologist and author of repute has substantiated the birth details of Rama with planetarium software. She has used the details given in Valmiki Ramayana and a comparative study with planetarium software and astronomical data established that what the Sage has written in his work scientifically match.

Kerala’s fascination with Adhyatma Ramayana dates back to many centuries, much older than the claim for Ram Janmabhumi Temple. Perhaps, K K Nair, the then district magistrate of Ayodhya, got his passion for Ram Temple because of his daily recitation of Ramayana, according to monks in Kuttanadu region where he was born.

Karkkadaka is the period that brings copious rainfall to Kerala thanks to the South West Monsoon. The monsoon is at its fury for the whole month sending the daily wage  earners to starve as they are left with no income.

“The hunger and poverty force them to devotion and what is the best recourse other than Ramayana,” asked Swamy Chidanandapuri, the spiritual head of the Sanatanis in the State.

Another monk, Swami Ranganathanada, in his work “Eternal Values for a Changing Hindu Society” has said that Ramayana is read regularly in Indonesia, the country with largest Muslim population!