Sita walks with hermit (Thai Ramayana mural)

Sita walks with hermit (Thai Ramayana mural)

Sita walks through the forest with a hermit in this mural detail from the Emerald Buddha Temple. The crowned Sita walks with her right hand bent across her chest. She follows just behind a moutached hermit who carries a walking stick and a palm leaf fan. They both wear inticately painted cloth sarongs. The hermit wears a matching tunic draped over one shoulder and a headscarf. In this portrayal, Sita appears as narrow-waisted as ever despite although she is pregnant.

In the Ramayana, Sita is unharmed by Laksman even though the jealous Rama has ordered Laksman to kill her. Laksman substitutes a deer’s heart in place of Sita’s as “proof” of her death, which he shows to Rama. Unharmed, Sita wanders alone into the forest where she is found by a kindly hermit. The hermit takes her to his forest home for safety, and he cares for her during her pregnancy.