About The Book : This book is constituted of the lectures Dr. Annie Besant gave to students, highlighting the noble ideals and virtues embodied in the story of Rama, the ideal king, as related by the Sage Valmiki. It is a companion volume to another series of lectures published under the title Mahabharata: the Story of the Great War. Dr. Besant's deep understanding of ancient Indian culture and thought and her magnificent language will assist young Indians, and some older people also, to go back to their roots and enrich the present with the great values of the past. About The Author : Annie Besant (1847–1933) was a British socialist, theosophist, freemason, women's rights and Home Rule activist, educationist, and campaigner for Indian nationalism. Regarded as a champion of human freedom, she was an ardent supporter of both Irish and Indian self-rule. She was also a prolific author with over three hundred books and pamphlets to her credit. As an educationist, her contributions included being one of the founders of the Banaras Hindu University. For fifteen years, Besant was a public proponent in England of atheism and scientific materialism. Besant's goal was to provide employment, better living conditions, and proper education for the poor. Besant then became a prominent speaker for the National Secular Society (NSS), as well as a writer, and a close friend of Charles Bradlaugh. In 1877 they were prosecuted for publishing a book by birth control campaigner Charles Knowlton. The scandal made them famous, and Bradlaugh was subsequently elected as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Northampton in 1880.
