THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF PARIS'S VERSION OF TRIBHUM: A STUDY OF ITS JUXTAPOSITION TO RAMAKIAN

Abstract

This article aims to investigate The National Library of Paris’s Version of the Tribhum focusing on three episode: the Lanka Island, the Asuraphong (the demon family) and the Chak-Naga-Duek-Dum-Ban (churning the Milk Ocean). Traditionally, the Tribhum is considered a Buddhist narrative while the Ramakian is a Brahman-Hindu story. However, it is revealed that The National Library of Paris’s version of the Tribhum contains both beliefs. The study also finds that The National Library of Paris’s version of the Tribhum illustrates not only Thai people’s understanding of the Ramakian in the past but also the juxtaposition between Buddhism and Brahmanism-Hinduism.