Was the Sita that Viradha abducted also Maya-Sita?
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Question, when Ravana kidnapped Sita, it was the Maya Sita.
But earlier when Virudha kidnapped, had also abducted Sita. So, at that time also was it some Maya Sita that he had abducted? Answer, from what I have heard or read in the Ramayana and the broader Rama tradition involving the commentaries, I haven’t come across any such explanation of any Maya Sita being involved over there. Now, again, we have to, beyond specifics, look at the underlying principles.
The principle is that when Maya Sita is talked about, the point of Maya Sita is not mentioned directly in the Valmiki Ramayana. It is mentioned in the Kurma Purana, which is a part of the broader tradition. So, the concern there is about how Sita remained pure even when she was abducted by Ravana.
So, a woman’s purity and chastity is her dharma. And there’s a lot of concern for the protection of that. And it was not just that Sita was abducted for a few moments.
When she was abducted by Ravana, she was for a long time with him. So, the whole arrangement of Maya Sita was arranged so that although Sita was away for a prolonged period, in which Ram served various purposes, he demonstrated his love for Sita by being in agony in separation from Sita. He formed an alliance with the Vanaras and he has demonstrated how we can use Varanaras also in his service.
Anybody, even monkeys can be engaged in his service. He averted the injustice that had been, he corrected the injustice that had been done to Sugriva. So, when the Lord performs pastimes, there are various purposes for those pastimes, not just one purpose.
And ultimately, he arranged to have Ravana killed. He himself killed Ravana and he arranged to have other cohorts killed by his associates, thus freeing the world from the demons. So, Sita’s abduction by Ravana served multiple purposes for Ram, for furthering the mission of Lord Ram.
And that required that Sita be abducted for a sustained period of time during which Lord Ram did all these things. And of course, ultimately, through it all, Sita also demonstrated her complete faithfulness to Ram by consistently rejecting all the advances of Ravana. Now, in contrast, when Virudha abducted Sita, that was just for a few moments.
Ram, Lakshmana, Sita were going through the forest and at that time, suddenly this demon appeared from nowhere and he saw Sita and he was captivated by her beauty and he tried to abduct her. And within a very short while, even before the demon could take Sita out of the sight of Ram, both Ram and Lakshmana sprang into action and they overpowered the demon. So, there was no question or no risk in this case of Sita’s chastity being threatened in any way, Sita’s purity being threatened in any way.
So, the whole point of the explanation of Maya Sita as being the one who was abducted by Ravana is to show how Sita’s chastity was protected. And that concern was there because Ravana’s abduction of Sita was for quite a long time. And that abduction was for a long time because Ram served multiple purposes through that particular turn in his pastimes.
On the other hand, Virudha’s abduction of Sita was just for a few moments. And in that moment, there was no danger for her chastity. And sometimes the word is used that Ravana could not even touch Sita because how can a demon touch the goddess of fortune? That understanding is there.
Now, the word touch can have many senses or it can have multiple meanings. Touch means just come in contact or touch can also mean violate. So, now, you see, when the lord descends to this world, he sometimes exhibits some of the pastimes where he does not display omnipotence.
And the Virudha pastime is one particular way where there is touch in the sense that when he abducted Sita, he did touch Sita. But he did not touch her in the sense of violating her. And that the primary concern of the Ramayana and the later revelation in the Rama and the eventual revelation in the Rama tradition of the Kurma Purana description of Maya Sita is to show how Sita’s chastity and she was always intact and how she was not never contaminated by the abduction with Ravana.
So, because there was no danger of violation because with the case of Virudha, because the abduction was for a few moments. So, there is in terms of the purpose of the storyline, there is no necessity of such an explanation in some other place about some form of Maya Sita being taken by Virudha. Now, of course, it is possible and if it is, that can also serve as an explanation that even there was no touch between, touch of, Virudha could not even touch Sita.
But, so if there is such explanation, we can definitely look for it and find it. But even if there is no such explanation, the major concern of this, of the whole overall incident of abduction is that Sita’s purity was never compromised. And that is not a concern in this past time.
So, therefore, there is no absolute need for the explanation of some kind of Maya Sita coming into the picture at this place. Thank you.