| Agastya |
famous sage, son of Mitra-Varuṇa and Urvaśī |
| Agni |
god of fire |
| Aikṣvāka |
“descendant of Ikṣvāku,” used mainly of Daśaratha and Rāma |
| Airāvata |
an elephant, Indra’s mount |
| Amarāvatī |
the city of the god Indra |
| apsarases
|
celestial maidens or nymphs, known for their beauty; frequently seen in the service of superior gods, especially Indra |
| asuras
|
a class of demons, the elder brothers of the gods |
| Ayodhyā |
capital city of the Ikṣvākus |
| Bala (v.1. Vala) |
demon slain by Indra. “Slayer of Bala” is a common epithet of Indra |
| Bharata |
Daśaratha’ s second son, by Kaikeyī |
| Bhogavatī |
city of the serpents conquered by Rāvaṇa |
| Brahmā |
creator divinity of the Hindu “trinity,” who is regarded as the “Grandfather” of all living creatures |
| Bṛhaspati |
family priest of Indra and the gods |
| Caitraratha |
Kubera’s pleasure garden on Mount Meru |
| cāraṇas
|
celestial bards |
| Citrakūṭa |
mountain where Rāma, Sītā, and Lakṣmaṇa first live during their exile |
| daityas
|
a class of demons descended from Diti |
| Dakṣa |
one of the ten mind-born sons of Brahmā; he is said to have had many daughters |
| dānavas
|
a class of demons descended from Danu |
| Daṇḍaka |
the forest where Rāma, Sītā, and Lakṣmaṇa spend part of their exile |
| Danu |
a name of Kabandha |
| Daśaratha |
Rāma’s father and king of Ayodhyā |
| Dāśarathi |
“descendant of Daśaratha,” used of Daśaratha’ s four sons, especially Rāma |
| Dūṣaṇa |
a general in Khara’s army in Janasthāna, slain by Rāma |
| gandharvas
|
a class of semi-divine beings known for their musical abilities. Gandharva women are noted for their beauty
|
| Ganges |
a famous and important river of ancient and modern India, which is personified as the daughter of Mt. Himalaya. She is the sister of Pārvatī |
| Garuḍa |
the king of the birds; Viṣṇu’s mount |
| Godāvarī |
a river in the Deccan |
| guhyakas
|
see yakṣas
|
| Himalaya |
name of a mountain range and king of the mountains |
| Ikṣvāku |
family name of the royal House of Ayodhyā |
| Ilvala |
a rākṣasa; brother of Vātāpi
|
| Indra |
king of the gods who leads their hosts into battle against the asuras
|
| Janaka |
lord of Mithilā, father of Sītā |
| Jānakī |
“daughter of Janaka;” epithet of Sītā |
| Janasthāna |
part of the Daṇḍaka forest and the residence of Śūrpaṇakhā, sister of Rāvaṇa, and her brother Khara |
| Jaṭāyus |
a vulture, friend of Daśaratha |
| Jaya |
father of Virādha |
| Kabandha |
a rākṣasa slain by Rāma
|
| Kaikeyī |
junior wife of Daśaratha and the mother of Bharata |
| Kailāsa |
mountain peak in the Himalayas where Śiva and Pārvatī reside |
| Kākutstha |
“descendant of Kakutstha;” a common epithet of princes of the
Ikṣvāku dynasty, especially Rāma and his brothers
|
| Kāma |
god of love |
| Kandarpa |
epithet of Kāma |
| Kausalyā |
senior wife of Daśaratha, mother of Rāma |
| Khara |
brother of Rāvaṇa and Śūrpaṇakhā |
| kinnaras
|
mythical creatures with the head of a horse and a human body; kinnara women are famed for their beauty
|
| Kosala |
kingdom of the Ikṣvākus |
| Krauñca |
a mountain or forest south of Janasthāna |
| Kubera |
god of wealth, son of Viśravas and half-brother of Rāvaṇa. Kubera is the king of the
yakṣas
|
| Kumbhakarṇa |
brother of Rāvaṇa, known for his great site |
| Lakṣmaṇa |
son of Daśaratha by Sumitrā, Rāma’s constant companion |
| Laṅkā |
Rāvaṇa’s capital city, scene of Sītā’s confinement and the epic’s culminating battle |
| Maithilī |
“woman of Mithilā,” epithet of Sītā |
| Māṇḍakarṇi |
a sage who lived on air for ten thousand years |
| Mandākinī |
tributary of the Ganges; sometimes an epithet of the Ganges |
| Mandara |
a mountain used as the churning rod in the mythical churning of the ocean |
| Manmatha |
epithet of Kāma |
| Mārīca |
a rākṣasa, son of Sunda and Tāṭakā
|
| Maruts |
storm gods, companions of Indra |
| Mataṅga |
a sage whose ashram is near Ṛśyamūka mountain |
| Meru |
a mythical mountain; thought to be the axis mundi |
| Namuci |
an asura slain by Indra
|
| Nandana |
the pleasure garden of Indra |
| Nandi |
a bull, Śiva’s mount |
| Niṣādas |
forest-dwelling hunters and fishermen |
| Pāka |
a demon slain by Indra; the deed gives rise to the common epithet of the great god: Pākaśāsana, “chastiser of Pāka” |
| Pampā |
the lake or river where Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa first encounter Hanumān and Sugrīva |
| Pañcavaṭī |
a forest where Rāma, Sītā, and Lakṣmaṇa live during their exile |
| piśācas
|
a class of demons of a particularly low order |
| Prasravaṇa |
mountain where Rāma, Sītā, and Lakṣmaṇa reside for part of their exile |
| Pulastya |
mind-born son of Brahmā, ancestor of the rākṣasas
|
| Puṣpaka |
the aerial chariot stolen by Rāvaṇa from Kubera |
| Rāghava |
any descendant of Raghu, used especially of Rāma and his brothers |
| Raghu |
son of Kakutstha, ancestor of Rāma |
| Rāhu |
the asura who causes eclipses by swallowing the sun and moon
|
| rākṣasa |
a class of violent and bloodthirsty demons |
| Rāma |
eldest son of Daśaratha by Kausalyā |
| Rambhā |
an apsaras with whom Tumburu is in love
|
| Rāvaṇa |
main antagonist of the Rāmāyaṇa; the rākṣasas’ ten-headed overlord who abducts Sītā
|
| Ṛkṣarajas |
a monkey, father of Sugrīva |
| Rohiṇī |
daughter of Dakṣa, favorite consort of the moon |
| Ṛśyamūka |
the mountain where Rāma meets the monkey Sugrīva |
| Rudra |
epithet of Śiva |
| Rudras |
sons or companions of the storm god |
| Śabarī |
hermit woman who shows hospitality to Rāma |
| Śacī’s lord |
a common epithet of Indra; Śacī is Indra’s wife |
| Śakra |
a common epithet of Indra |
| Śarabhaṅga |
an ascetic whom Rāma, Sītā, and Lakṣmaṇa seek out after their encounter with the rākṣasa Virādha
|
| Sarayū |
a river that flows through the kingdom of Kosala |
| Śatahradā |
mother of Virādha |
| Saumitri |
“son of Sumitrā;” matronymic epithet of Lakṣmaṇa |
| Sītā |
daughter of Janaka, wife of Rāma |
| Śrī |
goddess of royalty, consort of Viṣṇu |
| Sthūlaśiras |
sage who curses Kabandha to retain his hideous form |
| Śukra |
preceptor of the asuras
|
| Sumitrā |
juniormost wife of Daśaratha, mother of Lakṣmaṇa and Śatrughna |
| Suparṇa |
epithet of Garuḍa |
| Śūrpaṇakhā |
a rākṣasa woman, sister of Rāvaṇa
|
| Sutīkṣṇa |
a sage who shows hospitality to Rāma |
| Takṣaka |
serpent lord defeated by Rāvaṇa |
| Triśiras |
a rākṣasa lieutenant of Khara, slain in single combat by Rāma
|
| Tumburu |
a gandharva cursed to become the rākṣasa Virādha
|
| Vaidehī |
“woman of Videha,” epithet of Sītā |
| Vaiśravaṇa |
“descendant of Viśravas,” epithet of Kubera |
| Vaivasvata |
“descendant of Vivasvān;” patronymic epithet of Yama |
| Vālin |
king of the monkeys, husband of Tārā, and son of Indra; he is the elder brother of Sugrīva |
| Varuṇa |
god of the ocean |
| Vāsava |
an epithet of Indra |
| Vāsuki |
serpent lord defeated by Rāvaṇa |
| Vasus |
a class of gods |
| Vātāpi |
a rākṣasa, brother of Ilvala, slain by the sage Agastya
|
| Vāyu |
god of the wind |
| Vibhīṣaṇa |
a rākṣasa, brother of Rāvaṇa, ally of Rāma
|
| Vindhya |
a mountain range in central India |
| Virādha |
a rākṣasa, who, having attempted to abduct Sītā, is slain by Rāma
|
