If the Sita who had sweet interactions with Hanuman in Lanka was Maya-Sita, then were those interactions also Maya?

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Question: If Sita is replaced by Maya Sita, then how do we understand the sweet relationship between Sita and Hanuman that is forged in Lanka while Sita is in captivity? More importantly, isn’t Hanuman just being used to help Sita escape her suffering while he has to suffer on her behalf?

Answer: There are three distinct points here that we need to consider one by one.

First is the point of this particular plot in the story. Second are its emotional ramifications or dimensions. Third are its ethical dimensions.

First and foremost, there is very little mention, if any, of this substitution in the Valmiki Ramayana. The Valmiki Ramayana is a straightforward story where Sita is abducted, meets Hanuman, forges a sweet relationship with him, and is reunited with Lord Rama when he kills Ravana. This is the main story we need to focus on.

All other plot points or narratives should be subordinated to this key story. All retellings or additions must be seen in the light of the main story. Srila Prabhupada also told us that the Valmiki Ramayana is the main Ramayana.

Now, the nature of absorption, devotion, and rasa (taste) is that we want to know more and more about the characters and stories we love. This happens even for popular TV series or movies like Star Wars, where entire videos analyze dialogues or scenes in detail. This is a small reflection of the immense immersion the Ramayana has commanded for millennia.

Naturally, many subsequent authors have written Ramayanas. From the transcendental perspective, Ramayana is the lila (divine pastimes) of the Lord and ultimate reality. Those who write on it—especially saints or those contributing to sacred literature like the Puranas—participate in ongoing revelation. Thus, nuanced retellings emerge.

Just like there is black and white, there are shades of gray. Seeing shades of gray does not mean we discard black and white; rather, it refines and deepens our understanding. The previous understanding is not contradicted but made more nuanced, refined, and evolved through analysis and elaboration.

With this context, let us now look at the retelling of Sita being replaced by Maya Sita.

The main concern of this plot is how the goddess of fortune, the consort of the supreme Lord, could be touched by a demon. The focus is on preserving Sita’s purity. When this is the focus, everything else is subordinated to it. How was Sita’s purity preserved?

We know Ravana never physically violated Sita because of a curse that he would die if he tried. Still, the very fact that he touched and abducted her disturbed those who prioritized maintaining Sita’s purity as the representative of womanhood.

With this concern, the story goes that Sita was not actually taken; it was Maya Sita, who we know from a previous life was Vedavati, sent to take revenge for having been defiled by Ravana.

Does this mean Sita is enjoying Vedavati’s suffering? Not exactly. Vedavati desired to be the cause of Ravana’s destruction, and that is precisely what she accomplishes.

Could this have happened without Vedavati suffering separated from Lord Rama for nearly a year and not being reunited with him? Yes, it could have. The Lord can do anything. For example, if Lord Rama had simply died of heartbreak when Sita was abducted, we wouldn’t have the dramatic narrative of the Ramayana.

The important point is that when Vedavati took on the role of Sita, she immersed herself completely in that mood. Since this is a transcendental arrangement—Vedavati herself being the goddess of fortune—the transition was seamless. She could feel and behave exactly as Sita did.

We see a similar example in Krishna’s Brahma-Vimala Lila, where He expands into all the gopas and cows, replicating them so precisely that even their parents do not notice anything different.

This is Krishna’s mystical potency. Similarly, by transcendental arrangement, Vedavati could take on all the emotions and actions of Sita. Essentially, Vedavati became Sita—not just in physical form but also in emotional disposition and personality. Even Sita’s memories before abduction were transferred to Vedavati.

Thus, before the abduction, after the abduction, and after the reunion, the personality continuity was maintained. The mystical arrangement ensured Vedavati had the form, emotions, and memories of Sita.

Therefore, the intimate pastimes between Hanuman and Sita in Lanka were not with someone else. Sita recognizes Hanuman afterward as the same being. The transition was seamless, so the relationship forged between Hanuman and Sita continues unchanged.

Just as there was a transference from Sita to Vedavati, there is a transference back from Vedavati to Sita, preserving continuity. This is the genius of this arrangement. It is not merely illusion or deception, but a transcendental arrangement for Ravana’s sake.

Now, regarding the ethical aspect: Vedavati was performing austerities in the Himalayas to have Lord Vishnu as her husband. When Ravana touched her, she felt defiled and ended her life by entering mystical fire.

Attaining the supreme Lord—especially as His consort—is an enormously difficult task. The austerities she performed in the Himalayas continued during her time as the replica of Sita, enduring suffering and separation from Rama.

Yes, it was agonizing, but through this suffering, she was purified, just as Sita was. It was not that Sita evaded karma; rather, both fulfilled their desires through this arrangement.

One desire was Vedavati’s personal revenge against Ravana, to rid the world of someone who thought it his right to take any woman he fancied. The other was to attain the Lord.

Through her austerity of living in Lanka, resisting Ravana’s advances, and remaining faithful to Rama, she became purified. When she entered the fire and Sita replaced her, Vedavati attained the ultimate destination—becoming the eternal associate of the Lord in the spiritual world. That was not Sita’s destiny in this world.

Thus, this arrangement was beneficial even for Vedavati.

In conclusion, the purpose of preserving Sita’s purity is fulfilled, and the backstory is given a satisfying resolution. The seamless transference of form, emotions, memories, and behaviors from Sita to Vedavati and back to Sita is due to the mystical potency of the Lord.

Thank you.