Rāvaṇa is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic Ramayana.
Rāvaṇa is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic Ramayana, where he is depicted as the rakshasa and asura king of Lanka. Rama had once addressed Ravana as a "Maha Brahman" (Great Brahmam in the context of his education).
Rāvaṇa is depicted and described as having ten heads. He is described as a follower of Shiva, a great scholar, a capable ruler and a maestro of the veena, but someone who wished to overpower the devas.
His ten heads represents that his knowledge of the six shastras and the four Vedas. In the Ramayana, Rāvaṇa is the antagonist, kidnapping Rama's wife Sita to exact vengeance on Rama and his brother Lakshmana for having cut off the nose of his sister Surpanakha.
