Valmiki (/vlmiki/;[1] Sanskrit: Vlmki)[2] is celebrated as the harbinger-poet in

Sanskrit literature. He is the author of the epic Rmyaa, based on the attribution in the text of
the epic itself.[3] He is revered as the di Kavi, which translates to First Poet, for he invented
loka[4] (i.e. first verse or epic metre), which set the base and defined the form to Sanskrit poetry.
Part of a series on

Hinduism

Hindu

History

Concepts[show]
Schools[show]
Deities[show]
Texts[show]
Practices[show]
Gurus, saints, philosophers[show]
Other topics[show]

Glossary of Hinduism terms

Hinduism portal

Contents

1 Early life
2 Writer of the Rmyaa

3 The first loka

4 As God's incarnation

5 Balmiki community

6 References

7 External links

Early life
The Uttara Kanda tells the story of Valmiki's early life, as a highway robber named Ratnakar,
who used to rob people after killing them. Once, the robber tried to rob the divine sage Narada
for the benefit of his family. Narada asked him if his family would share the sin he was incurring
due to the robbery. The robber replied positively, but Narada told him to confirm this with his
family. The robber asked his family, but none agreed to bear the burden of sin. Dejected, the
robber finally understood the truth of life and asked for Narada's forgiveness. Narada taught the
robber the mantra for salvation. But, the mantra in question, the name of Lord Rama, was not to
be given to murderers and the like. Narada thus told Valmiki to chant "Mara" the phonetic
anagram of "Rama" instead to circumvent this restriction. The robber meditated for many years,
so much so that ant-hills grew around his body. Finally, a divine voice declared his penance
successful, bestowing him with the name "Valmiki": "one born out of ant-hills" (Valmikam in
Sanskrit means Ant-hill).[5]

Writer of the Rmyaa

The youthful sage Nrada at the white-bearded Vlmki's hermitage

St in Vlmki's hermitage
The Rmyaa, originally written by Vlmki, consists of 23,000 lokas and 7 cantos {Kaas}
including the Uttara canto {Kaa}. Rmyaa is composed of about 480,002 words, being a
quarter of the length of the full text of the Mahbhrata or about four times the length of the
Iliad. The Rmyaa tells the story of a prince, Rma of Ayodhy, whose wife St is abducted
by the demon-king (Rkasa) of Lak, Rvaa. The Vlmki's Rmyaa is dated variously
from 500 BC to 100 BC, or about co-eval with early versions of the Mahbhrata.[6] As with
many traditional epics, it has gone through a process of interpolations and redactions, making it
impossible to date accurately.

Vlmki is also quoted to be the contemporary of r Rma. r Rma met Vlmki during his
period of exile and interacted with him. Vlmki gave shelter to St in his hermitage when Rama
banished her. Kua and Lava the twin sons of Sri Rama were born to St in this
hermitage.Vlmki taught Rmyaa to Kua and Lava, who later sang the divine story in
Ayodhy during the Avamedha yaja congregation, to the pleasure of the audience, whereupon,
King r Rma questioned who they were and later visited Valmiki's hermitage to confirm if the
Sita, the two children claimed as their mother was in fact his wife in exile. Later, he summoned
them to his royal palace. Kua and Lava sang the story of r Rma there, and r Rma
confirmed that whatever had been sung by these two children was entirely true.

The first loka

The Killing of Krouncha Heron

Vlmki was going to the river Ganges for his daily ablutions. A disciple by the name Bharadvja
was carrying his clothes. On the way, they came across the Tamasa Stream. Looking at the
stream, Vlmki said to his disciple, "Look, how clear is this water, like the mind of a good man!
I will bathe here today." When he was looking for a suitable place to step into the stream, he saw
a crane couple mating. Vlmki felt very pleased on seeing the happy birds. Suddenly, hit by an
arrow, the male bird died on the spot. Filled by sorrow, its mate screamed in agony and died of
shock. Vlmki's heart melted at this pitiful sight. He looked around to find out who had shot the
bird. He saw a hunter with a bow and arrows, nearby. Vlmki became very angry. His lips
opened and he cried out,
'
m nida pratih tvamagama vat sam
yat kraucamithundekam avadh kmamohitam[7]
You will find no rest for the long years of Eternity
For you killed a bird in love and unsuspecting[8]

Emerging spontaneously from Valmiki's rage and grief, this was the first loka in Sanskrit
literature. Later Vlmki Muni composed the entire Rmyaa with the blessings of Lord
Brahm in the same meter that issued forth from him as the loka. Thus this loka is revered as
the "first loka" in Hindu literature. Vlmki Muni is revered as the first poet, or di Kavi, and
the Rmyaa, the first Kvya.
His first disciples to whom he taught the Rmyaa were Kua and Lava, the sons of r Rma:
| || 96:16
In another verse, it is also stated that he is from the lineage of the sage Bhrgava:
| || 94:24

As God's incarnation
The Vishnudharmottara Purana says that Valmiki was born in the Tretayuga as a form of Vishnu
who composed the Ramayana, and that people desirious of earning knowledge should worship
Valmiki.[9]

Artist's reproduction in Plaster of Paris of Valmiki at Dwaraka Tirumala, Andhra Pradesh

Balmiki community
The Balmiki community found in Punjab, Rajasthan, and Gujarat worship Valmiki as their
ancestor and as God.[citation needed]

References
1.

"Valmiki". Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.

2.

Julia Leslie, Authority and Meaning in Indian Religions: Hinduism and the Case
of Valmiki, Ashgate (2003), p. 154. ISBN 0-7546-3431-0

3.

Vlmki, Robert P. Goldman (1990). The Rmyaa of Vlmki: An Epic of

Ancient India 1. Princeton University Press. pp. 1415. ISBN 0-691-01485-X.

4.

Encyclopaedia of Hinduism, Volume 3 by Sunil Sehgal (1999), p. 505.

5.

Suresh Chandra (1998). Encyclopaedia of Hindu gods and goddesses. Sarup &
Sons. pp. 2623. ISBN 9788176250399.

6.
7.
8.
9.

Goldman, Robert P., The Rmyaa of Vlmki: An Epic of Ancient India pp. 23
Sacred-Texts.com IAST encoded transliteration (modified from original source to
accurately reflect sandhi rules)
Buck, William and van Nooten, B. A. Ramayana. 2000, page 7
Mythology of Vishnu and His Incarnations by Manohar Laxman Varadpande
(2009), p. 166