Ra's al Ghul is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. Created by editor Julius Schwartz, writer Dennis O'Neil, and artist Neal Adams, the character first appeared in Batman #232's "Daughter of the Demon" (June 1971).
Most notable as the leader of the League of Assassins, Ra's al Ghul's name in Arabic translates to "Head of the Ghoul". He is the son of Sensei; the father of Talia al Ghul, Ali al Ghul, Nyssa al Ghul, Dusan al Ghul and Arkady Duvall; and the maternal grandfather of Damian Wayne, who is the biological son of Bruce Wayne/Batman and Talia. Other versions include other grandchildren such as Athanasia al Ghul (Injustice timeline), Hafid al Ghul (Damian's clone), Tallant Wayne (Brotherhood of the Bat timeline), and by last the siblings: Saif al Ghul, Taj al Ghul and Janan al Ghul (in the Earth al Ghul timeline). Stories featuring Ra's al Ghul often involve the Lazarus Pits, which restore life to the dying. The Lazarus Pits have considerably prolonged Ra's' life, making him particularly dangerous, as he has honed his combat skills for centuries. Though primarily an enemy of Batman, Ra's has also come into conflict with Superman and other heroes in the DC Universe.