Paula Richman

Biographic Data

ID148209
NAMEPaula Richman
GIVEN NAMESPaula
FAMILY NAMERichman
SIGNATURERICHMAN P
AFFILIATIONSOberlin College
VERIFIEDNo
TOTAL WORKS36
TOTAL CITATIONS63
AUTHOR COUNT36
EDITOR COUNT2
FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR1985
LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR2026
H-INDEX3

  • The Cultural Politics of Classifying Mithila Painting

    Open AccessPaula RichmanARTICLEAsian Ethnology2026

    William Archer, an officer in the Indian Civil Service, published the first analysis of Mithila painting in 1949, focusing on Maithil women’s artworks on the walls and earthen floors in their residential compounds. In 1980, after spearheading a disaster relief project in 1967 that enabled Maithil women to paint their domestic images on paper for sale at New Delhi’s Cottage Industry emporia, Pupul Jayakar wrote about the art form as a handicraft. …

  • Representations of Ravana in a Kathakali Piece and a Mythological Drama

    Paula RichmanCHAPTERThe Multivalence of an Epic2023

    Over the centuries, the Hindu Ramayana tradition has represented Ravana, king of the raksasas, in two main ways. In the story’s earliest extant iteration, Valmiki’s epic Ramayana, Rama takes human birth to end the predations of Ravana, whose tyranny causes great suffering; Rama restores dharma on earth by slaying Ravana. This chapter analyzes two productions that present Ravana as the play’s central character, rather than merely a symbol of adhar…

  • The Ramayana of Valmiki

    Paula RichmanARTICLEJournal of the American Oriental…2018

    The Rāmāyaṇa of Vālmīki: An Epic of Ancient India. Vol. 6: Yuddhakāṇḍa. Translation and annota tion by Robert P. Goldman, Sally J. Sutherland Goldman, and Barend A. van Nooten. Introduction by Robert P. Goldman and Sally J. Sutherland Goldman. Princeton Library of Asian Translations. Princeton. Princeton University Press, 2009. Pp. 1655 + xviii. $210 (cloth), $75 (paper). The Rāmāyaṇa of Vālmīki: An Epic of Ancient India. Vol. 7: Uttarakāṇḍa. Int…

  • We Don't Change It, We Make It Applicable”

    Paula RichmanARTICLETDR/The Drama Review2010

    Why did audiences for Ramlila, which recounts how Lord Ram rescued his wife from the ten-headed demon king, wane in Trinidad in the 1970s and '80s? English narration along with the traditional Hindi verses, topical improvisation, new methods of script development, and breaking old gender and caste restrictions have revived the genre and led to the founding of 10 new troupes between 1995 and 2005

  • Ways of Celebrating Ram’s Birth

    Paula RichmanARTICLEReligions of South Asia2010

    Hindu descendants of Indian indentured labourers, who arrived in colonial Natal between 1860 and 1910, celebrate Ram Navami (Ram’s birth) today in Greater Durban, South Africa, in diverse ways related to the Indian regions from which their ancestors came and their subsequent history after they settled locally. Hindi-speaking Hindus focus on exegesis of Ramcaritmanas, a text-centred practice, while Telugu-speaking Hindus celebrate with bhajans by …

  • The Crisis of Secularism in India

    Open AccessPaula Richman, Shabnum Tejani et al.BOOKCrisis of Secularism in India2007

  • Ravana in London

    Open AccessPaula RichmanARTICLECultural Dynamics2007References: 4

    The Ramayana, one of Hinduism's two pre-eminent epics, portrays the heroic Rama as an exemplar of proper behavior, but demon king Ravana as deviant in culinary, sexual, and political deeds. Representations of Ravana have been theorized as functioning to (1) dehumanize (mostly Muslim) enemies as aliens or (2) condemn treatment by plantation owners in indentured labor colonies. This article analyzes representations of Ravana in three London plays (…

  • A Tamil Modernist's Account of India's Past

    Open AccessPaula RichmanARTICLEThe Journal of Asian Studies2007Cited by: 1References: 16

    The Ramayana, one of Hinduism's two preeminent epics, has been retold in diverse ways over the centuries, but one modern rendition is unique:Nārata-Rāmāyaṇam(?). Its author, C. Virudhachalam (1906-48), wrote in Tamil under the pen name Pudumaippittan, meaning "one who is mad about newness."Nārata-Rāmāyaṇam(?)presents colonialism as a continuation of the Ramayana narrative, showing how an ancient South Asian narrative can serve as an imaginative f…

  • A Diaspora Ramayana in Southall, Greater London

    Paula RichmanARTICLEJournal of the American Academy…1999

    A Diaspora Ramayana in Southall, Greater London Get access Paula Richman Paula Richman Paula Richman is Irvin E. Houck Professor of South Asian Religions at Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH 44074-1095 Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of the American Academy of Religion, Volume 67, Issue 1, March 1999, Pages 33–57, https://doi.org/10.1093/jaarel/67.1.33 Published: 01 March 1999

  • Inside the Drama-House

    Paula RichmanARTICLEHistory of Religions1999

  • Arts and Crafts of Tamilnadu

    Paula Richman, Nanditha KrishnaARTICLEJournal of the American Oriental…1999

    Tamilnadu's isolated geography left it to develop an uninterrupted classical heritage, enabling it to attain high levels of perfection in almost every craft. This book explores the world of the artisan and craftperson of Tamilnadu who fashions each article with love and care, always with a working knowledge of the age-old 'Shaastras' or canons of art. These creations are a tribute to an ancient culture - and the artisans own understanding of and …

  • The "Cilappatikāram" of Iḷaṅkō Aṭikaḷ

    Paula RichmanARTICLEHistory of Religions1998

  • When God Is a Customer

    Paula RichmanARTICLEHistory of Religions1996Cited by: 1

  • A Gift of Tamil

    Hank Heifetz, Norman Cutler et al.ARTICLEJournal of the American Oriental…1995

  • Epic and State

    Paula RichmanARTICLEPublic Culture1995Cited by: 10References: 6

    Research Article| September 01 1995 Epic and State: Contesting Interpretations of the Ramayana Paula Richman Paula Richman Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Public Culture (1995) 7 (3): 631–654. https://doi.org/10.1215/08992363-7-3-631 Cite Icon Cite Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation Paula Richman; Epic and State: Contesting Interpretations of the Ramayana. Public Culture 1 …

  • The Hungry God

    Paula Richman, David ShulmanARTICLEJournal of the American Oriental…1994

    The folklore and classical literature of India abound with stories of parents who sacrifice their children. In this book the author examines one set of such tales - Hindu texts that bear similarities to the biblical aqedah, the account of Abraham's near-sacrifice of Isaac. In all the stories that Shulman explores, the sacrifice proceeds from a divine command and has no utilitarian explanation or rationale. Both the biblical and Indian aqedah text…

  • A Gift of Tamil

    Archana Daya Shankar, Norman Cutler et al.ARTICLEPacific Affairs1994

  • Many Rāmāyaṇas

    Syed Mohammad Shahed, Paula RichmanARTICLEAsian Folklore Studies1993Cited by: 35

    Throughout Indian history, authors and performers have produced, and patrons have supported, diverse tellings of the story of the exiled prince Rama, who rescues his abducted wife by battling the demon king who has imprisoned her. The contributors to this volume focus on these many Ramayanas. While most scholars continue to rely on Valmiki's Sanskrit Ramayana as the authoritative version of the tale, the contributors to this volume do not. Their …

  • Veneration of the Prophet Muhammad in an Islamic Piḷḷaittamil

    Paula RichmanARTICLEJournal of the American Oriental…1993

  • Many Rāmāyaṇas

    Robert P Goldman, Paula Richman et al.ARTICLEJournal of the American Oriental…1993

  • Boundaries of the Text

    Paula Richman, Joyce Burkhalter Flueckiger et al.ARTICLEAsian Folklore Studies1992Cited by: 2

  • Many Rāmāyaṇas

    Paula RichmanBOOKMany Ramayanas1991

  • Many Ramayanas

    Paula RichmanBOOKMany Ramayanas1991

  • Oral Epics in India

    Paula Richman, P I Richman et al.ARTICLEAsian Folklore Studies1991

  • Gender and Religion

    Winnie Tom, Caroline Walker Bynum et al.ARTICLEPhilosophy East and West1991