The Test
"How could he not trust me?" thought Sita.
The capture was successful, and Sita was living under Ravana's command. Sita was baffled at the thought that Rama would not trust her. Ravana had tricked Rama into leaving his lovely lady alone in their hut by turning his uncle, Maricha, into a golden deer to entice Rama. His plan succeeded, and Ravana was able to steal Sita away across the deep seas into his territory.
But that is not the story we are interested in here. Our story continues onto how Rama made Sita re-gain his trust. Luckily, this story has a slightly - keyword slightly - happy ending. Sita had spent what felt like an eternity in captivity under Ravana's command. She was hoping that when Rama rescued her, they could return back to their healthy, happy relationship that was built upon love and trust... but that was not the case. Rama rescued Sita from Ravana, which was incredibly difficult, but after rescuing her, he did not trust that she had stayed true and pure for him.
"I never entered Ravana's bed! For if I were to lay a hand on him or him on me, I would not be obeying my duty as your love. I only have eyes for you, and I have honored you with my purity. Do you not believe me?" cried Sita.
"I refuse to bring a woman into my kingdom who has lived with another man. How could I imagine trusting you? A woman is known to lie and deceive to get what she wants, and I have no doubt that this could be the case here," argued Rama.
After much debate, Sita convinced Rama to let her prove her purity to him. In doing so, Sita chose to use the test of fire. Sita bravely constructed a large fire, and then, with bold faith in the truth, she jumped into the fire. Rama's army of monkeys and bears surrounded Sita and gasped at the sight. How could being placed in a fire prove purity?! How foolish!
However, as we know, Sita was telling the truth. She had never entered the home of Ravana, for she had an unwavering commitment to her love for Rama. Therefore, Sita "aced" the test of fire. Agni, the god of fire, came down from the heavens and rescued Sita from the fire. This miraculous event had everyone in awe. They were also all doubtful of Sita's purity; luckily, they were pleasantly surprised to find out that their princess had remained loyal to their king. Unlike the others, Rama stood back, still questioning the purity of his queen.
After being rescued, Sita exhulted "Oh Rama, please believe me! I have a steadfast love for you that made me stay pure to you. Please bring me into your kingdom as your queen! I have loved you from the day I met you, and I promise to love you until the day that we depart!"
Rama turned his back, and with silence, he left Sita in the ashes and walked back to his kingdom alone - refusing to allow his army to follow him.
If only Sita would have known then, it would take far more than a test of fire to gain back Rama's trust.
Author's Note: This story is based off of the episode in the Ramayana entitled "Sita Tested." After watching Sita Sings the Blues, I was very intrigued by the story of Sita. I chose to write about the courageous love that Sita maintains for Rama, and I think the test of fire is the best metaphor for the way their love withstood difficulty. After the test of fire, Rama still does not trust Sita and eventually sends her into exile to selfishly gain respect from the kingdom. I chose to end my story on a cliffhanger instead of extending into this detail. The first picture I chose for this story was the painting of Sita waiting among the trees for Rama while under Ravana's control. I like how this can show the reader how she was living and prove to the reader that she was remaining pure rather than being with Ravana. Her body language shows her lack of interest in Ravana. The second picture I chose for this story was the painting included in the PDE Ramayana. I enjoy how it highlights the most important, shocking part of the story as Sita endures the test of the fire. While writing this story, I was torn on my writing style, but I ultimately chose to write this story from a third-person point of view and include dialogue that draws the reader in. I normally like to write stories from another point of view, but I wanted to include more dialogue and felt I could do that better using third-person. As I edit this story, I hope to elaborate on the dialogue and make it stronger. I want to include more dialogue as well as strengthen what I have already written.
The capture was successful, and Sita was living under Ravana's command. Sita was baffled at the thought that Rama would not trust her. Ravana had tricked Rama into leaving his lovely lady alone in their hut by turning his uncle, Maricha, into a golden deer to entice Rama. His plan succeeded, and Ravana was able to steal Sita away across the deep seas into his territory.
(Sita under Ravana's command BEFORE the test. Web Source: Wikimedia Commons).
But that is not the story we are interested in here. Our story continues onto how Rama made Sita re-gain his trust. Luckily, this story has a slightly - keyword slightly - happy ending. Sita had spent what felt like an eternity in captivity under Ravana's command. She was hoping that when Rama rescued her, they could return back to their healthy, happy relationship that was built upon love and trust... but that was not the case. Rama rescued Sita from Ravana, which was incredibly difficult, but after rescuing her, he did not trust that she had stayed true and pure for him.
"I never entered Ravana's bed! For if I were to lay a hand on him or him on me, I would not be obeying my duty as your love. I only have eyes for you, and I have honored you with my purity. Do you not believe me?" cried Sita.
"I refuse to bring a woman into my kingdom who has lived with another man. How could I imagine trusting you? A woman is known to lie and deceive to get what she wants, and I have no doubt that this could be the case here," argued Rama.
After much debate, Sita convinced Rama to let her prove her purity to him. In doing so, Sita chose to use the test of fire. Sita bravely constructed a large fire, and then, with bold faith in the truth, she jumped into the fire. Rama's army of monkeys and bears surrounded Sita and gasped at the sight. How could being placed in a fire prove purity?! How foolish!
(Sita endures the test of fire. Web Source: Wikipedia)
However, as we know, Sita was telling the truth. She had never entered the home of Ravana, for she had an unwavering commitment to her love for Rama. Therefore, Sita "aced" the test of fire. Agni, the god of fire, came down from the heavens and rescued Sita from the fire. This miraculous event had everyone in awe. They were also all doubtful of Sita's purity; luckily, they were pleasantly surprised to find out that their princess had remained loyal to their king. Unlike the others, Rama stood back, still questioning the purity of his queen.
After being rescued, Sita exhulted "Oh Rama, please believe me! I have a steadfast love for you that made me stay pure to you. Please bring me into your kingdom as your queen! I have loved you from the day I met you, and I promise to love you until the day that we depart!"
Rama turned his back, and with silence, he left Sita in the ashes and walked back to his kingdom alone - refusing to allow his army to follow him.
If only Sita would have known then, it would take far more than a test of fire to gain back Rama's trust.
Author's Note: This story is based off of the episode in the Ramayana entitled "Sita Tested." After watching Sita Sings the Blues, I was very intrigued by the story of Sita. I chose to write about the courageous love that Sita maintains for Rama, and I think the test of fire is the best metaphor for the way their love withstood difficulty. After the test of fire, Rama still does not trust Sita and eventually sends her into exile to selfishly gain respect from the kingdom. I chose to end my story on a cliffhanger instead of extending into this detail. The first picture I chose for this story was the painting of Sita waiting among the trees for Rama while under Ravana's control. I like how this can show the reader how she was living and prove to the reader that she was remaining pure rather than being with Ravana. Her body language shows her lack of interest in Ravana. The second picture I chose for this story was the painting included in the PDE Ramayana. I enjoy how it highlights the most important, shocking part of the story as Sita endures the test of the fire. While writing this story, I was torn on my writing style, but I ultimately chose to write this story from a third-person point of view and include dialogue that draws the reader in. I normally like to write stories from another point of view, but I wanted to include more dialogue and felt I could do that better using third-person. As I edit this story, I hope to elaborate on the dialogue and make it stronger. I want to include more dialogue as well as strengthen what I have already written.