Maya Sita

In some versions of the Hindu epic Ramayana, Māyā Sīta (, "illusional Sita") or Chāyā Sīta (, "shadow Sita") is an illusion or copy of the goddess Sita. In the story, the demon king Ravana of Lanka kidnaps Maya Sita instead of the real Sita.

In the Ramayana, Sita is the wife of Rama. Rama is the prince of Ayodhya and an avatar of the god Vishnu. Ravana takes Sita away and keeps her in Lanka. Later, Rama saves her and kills Ravana. Sita then goes through Agni Pariksha. This is a test with fire. She does this to prove her chastity (that she was faithful) before Rama accepts her again. 

In some versions of the story, the fire god Agni creates Maya Sita. Maya Sita takes Sita's place. Ravana takes Maya Sita and keeps her prisoner. The real Sita hides in the fire. During the fire test, Maya Sita and the real Sita switch places again. Some texts say Maya Sita is destroyed in the fire. Others say she is blessed and born again as Draupadi or the goddess Padmavati. Some holy books say she was Vedavati in a past life. Vedavati was a woman Ravana tried to hurt.

The story of Maya Sita saves Sita from Ravana's evil plan. Sita is the main goddess for many people who worship Rama. This story keeps her pure. There are similar stories about doubles (copies) of Sita and other goddesses in Hindu mythology.

Original plot of the Ramayana
The Ramayana (5th to 4th century BCE) by Valmiki does not talk about Maya Sita. In that book, Sita is the princess of Mithila. She marries Rama, the prince of Ayodhya. Rama must leave his kingdom for 14 years. Sita and his brother Lakshmana go with him. Ravana is the demon king of Lanka. He plans to kidnap Sita. A demon named Maricha helps him. Maricha turns into a magic golden deer (Maya mriga). This deer attracts Sita.

Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana are in the Dandakaranya forest. Rama goes to catch the deer and kills it. The magic deer cries for help using Rama's voice. Sita tells Lakshmana to go help Rama. She is left alone. Ravana comes dressed as a holy man (ascetic) and kidnaps her. He keeps her in a garden called Ashoka Vatika in Lanka. Later, Rama saves her and kills Ravana in a war. Rama is not sure if Sita remained faithful. So, she goes through a fire trial (Agni Pariksha). Sita walks into a burning fire. She says that if she has been faithful to Rama, the fire should not hurt her. She comes out safe. The fire god Agni is proof that she is pure. Rama takes Sita back. They return to Ayodhya and become king and queen.Doniger (1999) p. 9Mani pp. 638–39

Development
The story of Maya Sita is the "most important instance of an addition" (change) in the Ramayana. The Kurma Purana (about 550–850 CE) is the first book to have Maya Sita. In this version, Ravana does not kidnap the real Sita. He kidnaps Maya Sita (a fake Sita). The real Sita is safe with Agni, the fire god. This was an important change in Vaishnavism (a group that worships Vishnu). It protected Sita's purity.

Some versions of the Ramayana do not have the fire test at all. This is to avoid asking questions about Sita's purity. These versions include the Mahabharata, Vishnu Purana, and Harivamsa. However, in later versions, the fire test became the way for the real Sita to come back. Sita and Maya Sita switch places during the fire test.Doniger (1999) p. 13

In the 12th century, people began to worship Rama more (bhakti movement). Many writers used the idea of Maya Sita. Devotees (worshipers) did not like the idea that Ravana touched Sita or put her in prison. The Maya Sita story saves Sita from this suffering. It also stops her from wanting the magic deer. In these texts, the fake Sita wants the deer and does not know it is fake. The idea of the magic deer might have led to the idea of the magic Sita.Doniger (1999) pp. 12–13 Also, Maya Sita is the one who speaks harshly to Lakshmana, not the real Sita.

The Kurma Purana and Brahma Vaivarta Purana used this story first. But the Adhyatma Ramayana (about 14th century) made Maya Sita very important. In this book, maya (illusion) is a big part of the story. This book influenced other versions of the Ramayana in Malayalam and Oriya. It also influenced the famous Ramcharitmanas by Tulsidas.Williams p. 24

The Ramcharitmanas explains the fire test more. No one knows Maya Sita replaced the real Sita. So, people doubt Sita. The text says the fire test destroys Maya Sita. It also destroys the "stigma" (shame) that Sita would have faced. Rama is not wrong for speaking harshly to "Sita" during the test because he knows it is the fake Sita. The real Sita is saved from shame because the fire proves she is pure.Doniger (1999) pp. 13–14 This story protects the good name of both Rama and Sita.Doniger (1999) p. 27

In many stories, Rama knows Ravana will come. He creates Maya Sita himself. This shows Rama is a god who knows everything. In Valmiki's story, Rama acts more like a human hero.

This story is also in the Devi Bhagavata Purana and Adbhuta Ramayana. It is also in Oriya books and plays.Williams p. 28–29Williams p. 36

Legend

In the Kurma Purana, Sita prays to Agni when Ravana comes. Agni creates Maya Sita. She looks exactly like Sita. Ravana takes Maya Sita. Agni takes the real Sita to heaven. Maya Sita stays in Lanka. After Ravana dies, Maya Sita enters the fire. Agni brings the real Sita back to Rama. Maya Sita is destroyed.

The Chaitanya Charitamrita tells a story about this. It is a book about Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. He meets a brahmin in Madurai. The brahmin is very sad. He thinks Ravana touched Mother Sita. He stops eating. Chaitanya tells him that Ravana only took Maya Sita. The demon could not touch Sita's spirit form. The brahmin feels better. Chaitanya goes to Rameswaram and hears the Kurma Purana. He brings the book back to the brahmin to prove the story is true.

In the Adhyatma Ramayana, Rama is the one who plans everything. He tells Sita to put her chaya (shadow) outside. He tells her to hide in the fire for a year. Sita does this. She creates Maya Sita. Ravana takes Maya Sita. Rama acts sad, but he might be pretending. After Ravana dies, Maya Sita goes into the fire and vanishes. Agni brings the real Sita back. He says Rama made the fake Sita to kill Ravana. The Ramacharitmanas tells a similar story. The Nepali Bhanubhakta Ramayana says Rama made Maya Sita from holy Kusha grass. A famous TV show, Ramayan, also used this story.Arvind Rajagopal, Politics after Television: Religious Nationalism and the Reshaping of the Indian Public  (Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 2001), pp. 113–14,

The Devi Bhagavata Purana tells what happens to Maya Sita after the fire. Agni tells Rama that Ravana will take Sita. Agni asks to keep Sita safe and swap her with Maya Sita. Rama agrees. Maya Sita looks just like Sita. They switch. Maya Sita wants the magic deer and gets kidnapped. During the fire test, she vanishes and the real Sita returns.Mani p. 722

When Rama leaves Maya Sita at the fire, she asks what she should do. Rama and Agni tell her to go to Pushkar and pray. She prays to Shiva for a long time. She becomes known as Svargalakshmi. She asks Shiva for a husband five times. Shiva says she will be born as Draupadi. Draupadi is a princess who marries five men (the Pandava brothers) in the Mahabharata. The text says she was Vedavati in a past life. Vedavati cursed Ravana. She appears in three different ages (yugas): as Vedavati, Maya Sita, and Draupadi.Mani pp. 548–49

A Tamil book, Sri Venkatachala Mahatyam, says Maya Sita is reborn as Padmavati. In this story, Ravana tries to hurt Vedavati. She hides with Agni. Agni dresses Vedavati as Sita. Ravana takes Vedavati. The real Sita hides with Agni. During the fire test, Vedavati comes out too. Rama refuses to marry her then because he promised to have only one wife. He says he will marry her in the Kali Yuga (the current age). In this age, he appears as Venkateshwara and she is born as Padmavati.Doniger (1999) p. 16

In the Malayalam Adhyatma Ramayana, Vedavati comes out of Sita's kitchen fire. She offers to be kidnapped instead of Sita. Sita hides in the fire. Later, Vedavati is blessed to marry Vishnu in the Kali Yuga.

Sometimes, Sita replaces Maya Sita just for a short time. In one story, Hanuman comes to Lanka to find Sita. Sita takes Maya Sita's place so she can meet Hanuman. This explains how Hanuman could speak to the real goddess.Philip Lutgendorf, Hanuman's Tale: The Messages of a Divine Monkey (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007), p. 199. 

Divine doubles: inspiration and influences
The original Ramayana does not have the story of Maya Sita being kidnapped. But it does have a fake Sita. During the war, Ravana's son Indrajit creates an illusion of Sita. He kills this illusion in front of Hanuman to make Rama's army sad. Later, they find out it was a trick.Doniger (1999) pp. 27–28 At the end of the story, Rama makes a golden statue of Sita. He uses this statue in ceremonies after the real Sita leaves.

Other stories also have fake Sitas. In the Ananda Ramayana, Ravana takes a "shadow" Sita. The real Sita stays unseen by Rama's left side. In a Tamil story, Ravana's sister Shurpanakha pretends to be Sita to trick Rama.Doniger (1999) pp. 18–19 In the Ramcharitmanas, the goddess Sati pretends to be Sita to test Rama. Rama knows it is not her.Doniger (1999) p. 17

Sometimes, other characters use doubles. A Tamil story says Ravana asked Shiva for his wife Parvati. Vishnu tricked Ravana and gave him an illusion of Parvati.Doniger (1999) p. 18 In a Malay story, Rama's mother turns a frog into her own image to stop Ravana from taking her.Doniger (1999) p. 21

Other cultures have stories about doubles too. In Greek myths, a fake Helen of Troy is kidnapped by Paris, which starts a war. This is like the story of Maya Sita.Doniger (1999) p. 28

References
 Notes

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Category:Illusions