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252 C. V. TAGARE

[Kurma. H._f Ch. 34. 112-140)

When the shadow of Sita entered fire afler Ravana’s dcath, real Sita came out. Slta’s resort to the Fire-god for protection from Ravana is endorsed by the DcvT Bhagavata (IU.Ch.29). The Brahma Vaivarta P. also confirms that this shadow or Maya Sita was created by Agni.

The Skanda ni in K&rtika Maha t my a attributes Slta’s abduction to Vrnda’s curse to Visnu for violating hcr chaslity.

Slta’s Birth

There should not have been any speculation about the birth of Sita. Ali the four Ramakathas in the MBh. affirm that Sita is Janaka’s daughter. In RamopSkhyana (MBh. 3, Vana. 274.9) it is staled:

fWnit    fkśt i

The Kurma P. (1.21.10) endorses it :

In Vedic times Sita, Savitrl were namcs of girls (vide the story of Sita, Savitri in the Taittiriya Brahmana 2.3.10). Janaka musi have named his daughter Sita as in the Vcdic period. But ‘Sita* also means ‘furrow, ploughed land. The poetic imagination, especially of the author of the Uttara Kanda (who also introduces the vindiclive Vcdavatl legend on the linę of Amba-Sikhandin in the Mbh.) confirmed the story of Sita bcing bom of the Earth wherein she ullimately disappeared. Visnu P. (12.4) regards her as ‘Ayonijś.’

There is another theory whieh regards Sita as the daughter of Ravana and Mandodarl The MahabhSgavata Purana (Ch.42) States:

Vasudeva-HindT_t a Jain work of the 6lh cent. A.D. supports this tradilion. We find this belief current in Tibet, Khotan, Thailand and Indonesia. It was prcdicted that this girl will ruin her father and hence she was kept in a box wilh hcr omaments and a letter and was kept in a park of Janaka. Janaka adopted hcr. Such adoption of girls was not unusual. Vasudeva’s sister was adopted by king Kuntibhoja and she came to be known as Kuntl. It is significant that hc (Ravana) did not allend his daughter*s svayamvara. Rama created a threat to his power in JanasthSna, as he killed Khara and other prominent Raksasa officcrs. But afler abduction Rfivana did not keep her in a prison celi but in the comfortable Ashoka garden. Mandodari seems to have assigned Trijata as hcr companion to console her. From Sundara Kanda, Sarga 18, it seems R3vana occasionally saw Sita wilh his wife. The