one of the two great epics of India, written in Sanskrit some time after the Mahabharata and telling of Rama
See Ramayana in American Heritage Dictionary 4
(rə-mäˈyə-nə)
noun
A Sanskrit epic, traditionally attributed to Valmiki, that concerns the banishment of Rama from his kingdom, the abduction of his wife Sita by a demon and her rescue, and Rama's eventual restoration to the throne.