Ramayana Connection With Ancient Sumer
Lord Rama / Rama-chandra was one of the exceptional and heroic kings in Indian history. Hailing from the aristocratic Iksvaku family line, known for producing the greatest warriors and sages the world has ever known, Lord Rama’s holy legacy along with his wife Sita has essentially shaped the masculine and feminine consciousness in the following millennia, creating a psychological blueprint for coming generations to follow. Flowing with heroic pathos and energy, the dynamics of warrior-kings are replete with legends of conquests and achievements that drive the most genuine devotion and reverence of ancestors and keep the spirit alive in modern times.
Lord Rama with Sita and Lakshmana arriving in Ayodhya in Pushpaka Vimana.
Academically, there is nothing more elevating than an accurate picture of our history. As we discuss the influence of great individuals in Indian history and their impact on the civilised world, there are various debates about the reach and extent of the ancient Aryan bloodlines beyond modern Indian boundaries.
Manu (Vaivasvata), the divine progenitor of Lord Rama and the Iksvaku / Scythian nobles was the first lawgiver and priest-king after the Great Flood. It is impossible to assume that Lord Rama and other Ikshvaku Kings had no connection and relevance beyond India.* These were the dynasties that conquered and brought about legacies throughout thousands of years, strategizing civilization, laying foundations for cities and capitals and establishing new laws as per changing times. A connection beyond their known territory was a practical necessity not just for blood alliance with other Scythian kings but quite possibly in order to maintain harmony in the world as a duty of a ‘Chakravartin’, the divine blood-right to establish and rule.
Map of Indus and Sumer
After the defeat of King Ravana, Lord Rama travelled back to the capital Ayodhya in a circular disc-shaped Vimana. Indian history is replete with instances where Vimanas were used by extraterrestrial gods and the Aryans to travel, which certainly implies that the rulers of ancient India had an immense interaction with outside planets, let alone nations. The Rig-Veda mentions the rule of Kshatriya kings spanning from the East of India, Sumer (modern Iraq and Syria) in between and all the way to Phoenicia in the West. Phoenicia, the land of the Rig-vedic Pāli in the ancient days, was known to have been a trade-port nation with travellers, sea-farers and merchants from other parts of the world. Kings of ancient India shared alliances with many other nations and were part of a much larger empire than currently assumed.
As per the Puranas, Vimana (UFOs) were used by ancient Aryans and the race of gods to travel across continents and even planets.
The Greek historian-poet Homer in his book ‘Odyssey’ describes UFOs (Vimana) to be a common sight in Phoenicia (‘Pāli’). Based on the evidence, it is nearly impossible to separate the ruling classes of ancient India, Sumer, Parthia and Phoenicia. When speaking of the territorial extent of Lord Rama’s rule, we come across archaeological evidence that mentions the name in several findings, often carved in stone.
The ancient Sumerians spoke of gods whom they called Anunnaki (advanced beings that arrived on Earth in UFOs)
So, to answer a common question as to which is older: Ramayana or Indus Valley? We are led to say that both of these dynamics belong in the same domain of the timeline of Aryan rulers across thousands of years.
Rim-Sîn, the Elamite ruler of the city-state of Larsa in ancient Sumer first comes to mind. ‘Rim’ can also be translated as Ram, and “Sin” in ancient Akkadian means ‘moon’ (Chandra). Lord Ramachandra was from the Ikshvaku Solar (Suryavanshi) dynasty. The Sumerian Kings list mentions the kings of Larsa to be belonging to the cult of Sun-worship as a reverence to the sun deity (Suryadev) whom they called ‘Utu’ who is said to have been riding a solar chariot similar to Suryadev.
Above: Statue of Rim-Sin (Ram-Chandra). | Below: Title “Rim-Sin, King of Larsa” on the stone bowl: 𒀭𒊑𒅎𒀭𒂗𒍪 Rim-Sin 𒈗 King of 𒌓𒀕 Larsa.
According to Babylonian tablets, Ram-Sin is mentioned to have become a very powerful chief and obtained the title “King of All Lands” (Chakravartin).
‘Warad’ or Warad-Sîn, the brother of Rim-Sîn, is very much cognate to ‘Bharat’, the elder brother of Rama-Chandra. The first king in the Sumerian Kings List is named Ukusi of the Kish dynasty, in the city of Ukhu. Scholar Laurence A. Waddell in his kings’ chronology mentions that this was the Solar King Ikshvaku.
Rig-Vedic: ‘Ikshvaku’
Akkadian (Sumerian): ‘Ukku’ of Kish / Alulim
Pāli (Phoenician): Okkāka
L. A. Waddell explains that Ukku / Alulim was the same as King Ikshvaku, The Babylonian tablets mention that his rule lasted for about 28,800 years!
Such mythic levels of lifespan are mentioned in the Puranas. The Babylonian legends also explain about specific rituals involving Aryan Kings and Anunnaki (extra-terrestrial) Goddesses that enabled the kings to live several thousand years due to increase in their level of consciousness and hyper hormone production in their pituitary and pineal (Ajna-Chakra) gland. This caused their ageing process to fall below a fraction of a percentage compared to normal humans.
Lord Rama meditating in front of Shiva-Linga
The name ‘Kish’, as per Assyrian records, was the first city dynasty to appear after the great flood, followed by Manu’s establishment of civilization. The great flood is also mentioned in Sumerian history to be the starting point of a new civilization.
In times much ahead, we learn that Lord Krishna often referred to Prince Arjuna as ‘Parthava’ (Parthian), indicating the Ksatriya lineage of the Parthians was well-spread into the West through Parthia and all the way to Phoenicia.
All Parthian kings, apart from the Lunar (Chandravanshi) kings were Sun-Worshippers. We find Suryavanshi-nature of noble living throughout the Scythian dynasties of Parthia, Bactria, ancient Sumer, and Phoenicia.
The term ‘Chakravartin’ is the same as the ancient Akkadian and Persian term ‘Shar-kishatim’. Both apply to the Scythian / Ikshvaku lineage of Kings deemed as “Universal Kings by birth-right”.
King Sargon of Babylon as “King of the Universe”. L. A. Waddell explains that Sargon was the same as Ikshvaku lineage king Sagar, a Chakravartin.
Lord Rama as Chakravartin
King Ashoka – Depicted as Chakravartin from the Shakya Ikshvaku lineage.
We find more inferences in the book ‘Indus Script Deciphered’ by famed archaeologist Dr. M. N. Krishna Rao from the Archaeological Survey of India. Dr Rao explains that the existence of various seals and sealings found in the Indus cities provides evidence of Lord Rama’s presence in the Indus Valley and that Rim-Sin appears to be an Aryan chief ruling over Elamites, Sumerians and Indo-Aryans of Indus civilization.
Dr. Rao mentions in his book:
“We have inscriptional evidence that his (Ram-Sin’s) son carried out the war with Samsu-luna after Ram-Sin’s death. We have recorded evidence that Isin and the city of Ur were taken back from Samsu-luna by the later rulers of the Sealand (Chaldaea) whose main centre of power, according to the deciphered Indus seals, was around the Mohenjo-Daro, Sindh and Gujarat region, and who ruled Sumer and Babylonia after the fall of the first dynasty of Babylonia.”
Hanging Gardens of Babylon
The legend of Ramayana speaks of Kumbha-Karna, a being of the giant race and brother of King Ravana in the opposition of Lord Rama. We find clear evidence of various races of giants existing in ancient Sumer and Phoenicia. These races are mentioned in the Sumerian tablets and found their way into legends of Celts and Stonehenge, and also into the Old Testament of the Christians. Races of giants that belonged to the tribe of the Amorites are commonly found in legends of ancient Sumer. The Amorite clans were mentioned to be descendants of the last race of giants walking on Earth around and before the time of Ram-Sin. The enemy of Ram-Sin is mentioned to be Hammurabi who was an Amorite.
Kumbha-Karna Illustration
Evidence of race of giants
Dr Rao also came up with a possible conclusion that today’s Ayodhya might not have been the original capital. He proposes a possible theory that the current Ayodhya might be a ‘new Ayodhya’, a homage to the original capital likely in ancient Haryana. This theory also comes closer to the mention in Ramayana in which the city was founded by Lord Rama just before the foothills of the Himalayas. Although this might not be true, in fairness, Dr Rao defended the present situation of Ram-Mandir, having been forced as a substructure below Babari-Masjid.
Assyriologist C. J. Gadd termed Ram-Sin’s rule as the Golden Age of Sumer. One of the significant achievements in modern archaeology involved the remarkable discoveries made by Sir Leonard Woolley in the ruins of the ancient Sumerian city of Ur (currently Iraq). Within the ruins of Ur, he uncovered a Ram-chapel (a shrine dedicated to Rim-Sin), initially overlooking its significance in world history. This pivotal revelation not only narrows the considerable divide between Aryan tradition and archaeology but also unveils the historical connections that once bound ancient India, Iran, Phoenicia and Sumer together.
Ram-Chapel in ruins of the city of Ur
The Ram-Chapel of Ur stands possibly as the earliest known tribute to the esteemed Lord Rama, possibly erected by Dilmun merchants residing in close proximity. This stands as a very promising notion as deifying and worshipping divine ancestors was a common Aryan tradition in the ancient world. Ur was known to be the first Sumerian city after the Flood
‘Ram’ was a sacred name in ancient Persia and Sumer, and used in the sacred Persian scripture ‘Zend Avesta’ that mentions the name ‘Ram Khwastra’, a second name for the wind god, Vayu, along with the name of the Sun-god ‘Mithra’ multiple times. The ancient Persian city of Persepolis revealed many “Ram-” names on its tablets.
There is no doubt that various scholarly and archaeological pieces of evidence that mention the dominance of Ikshvaku kings in Sumer, Phoenicia and regions west of India. Lord Ram’s name was considered sacred in the ancient lands of the Aryan empires. The search for true history must continue to unearth our rich heritage!
Article by: Marg Trivedi
