Chapter Twenty: Reading the Ramayana Part D (PDE Version)

 Okay, so for this post I want to talk specifically about when Sita is taken in by the Earth. The title of this part of the Ramayana is Sita Departs by Sister Nivedita. So what I liked most about this story was the potential for a completely different point of view. The writing seems as if it were purposely left general enough to imagine what was going through Sita’s head. That’s my favorite type of writing because then I can truly connect with the characters and test my knowledge of them and what they would think/do. 

This part of the story is my personal  favorite because Rama is basically asking Sita to prove her faithfulness and purity to him, and honestly, that’s an insult to any woman no matter where you come from or what your culture is. So I feel like when the Earth took in Sita, Rama sort of got what he deserved for questioning a woman who was there for him and went through so much with him. 

I guess I’ll throw in the very last part of the story just for the sake of it. It’s titled Rama Departs and is also by Sister Nivedita.

This part of the story basically brings everything full circle. We know that Rama was a reincarnation of Vishnu, so the fact that Vishnu enters heaven in his original form reiterates that. What I liked about this part was that it brought everything back to square one. I like when stories create a circle, however imperfect it may be. 

(Image from Wikimedia and is titled A Relief summery of Ramayana at Hindu Temple Cave 16 Ellora India by Jean-Pierre Dalbéra from Paris, France)