Rama
quickly wiped the tear from the corner of his eye and hardened his face,
sealing his lips in a line. How could he give her up? He cursed
Agni for tricking him at such a young and innocent age, but then he stopped and
cursed himself for ever letting himself be fooled, no matter how young he was.
Sati
stopped and sunk to his feet. "Oh Rama, I missed you so. I
love you and I will praise you forever for rescuing me. Thank you, love.
We can now start our lives together again. Oh Rama thank you!"
Rama
stepped back, removing himself from her grasp. "Sita. I... I
cannot be with you. I'm sorry. Please go from here. Your
trials are not over. I realize now that you are my first and only true
love. But I've made a mistake. You must leave.” Rama tried to warn her. He wanted to
save her from her death, not knowing how Agni would take her. But then
Sita did something no one was expecting.
"You
think I am impure? Rama I have wasted away my time here, saving myself for
you. I have done nothing to dishonor you. I have only prayed for
your return and longed for your love. What must I do to prove my
devotion?"
Rama
was shocked. He was not trying to second-guess her purity. He knew
she loved him and was devoted to him. That’s how he knew she was his true
love and why he must leave her. Him admitting that she was the one meant
Agni would sure come and take her away!
Then
Sita began to call to the gods, "Oh gods! Please have mercy on me! Let me
be with the one I love. Prove me to be pure and righteous. Agni, oh
god of fire. Purify me before my love so that he may accept me."
"Noooo!"
Rama yelled. Not Agni. Sita called for her death without even
knowing! "Sita, please no! Not..." but before Rama could
finish, flames grew high between them; they soared to the heavens. Sita
slowly walked forward. Rama saw Agni's face in the flames, smiling with
mouth wide open, hungry for Sita. In that moment, Rama wished he were
never victorious. Dying himself would have been better than watching his
love die in front of him.
Slowly
Sita walked forward. One foot ahead of
the other. She closed her eyes and spread her arms wide, giving herself to
the fire. "Purify me, Agni, for you are the most high. You will
prove my honesty and show the world I am true."
Agni
stopped and listened to the girl. She was worshipping her, praising her
for her might. Agni was shocked. Of all the gods, Sita called upon her to
prove her worth. Agni was honored. How could she kill one of her
beloved and faithful followers. Agni was taken by Sita's innocent charm
and child-like devotion and chose to let her live.
Sita
walked. One foot in the flame; the other foot in the flame. Her
body became enveloped. She kept walking. Flames consumed her but
she did not burn. She kept walking. Rama stood, eyes wide open, in
awe of the woman he loved. She was strong, fearless, and walking through
flames untouched.
Sita
crossed the fire and stood unharmed in front of Rama. The fire behind her
diminished, leaving behind clear smoke. Rama saw Agni's face, approving
of the lovers. Agni nodded to Rama and mouthed, "You are free."
Rama cried out and clasped
on to Sita. They wept in each other’s arms. "Oh Sita, my love.
I will cherish you always. Thank you my love, for you are honorable and
true. You are my life now. The gods approve of our union and I will
honor it for the rest of my life. We are free."
(Rama and Sita embrace. Found on WikipediaCommons.)
Author's Note:
I couldn't leave last weeks story without concluding it so I chose to continue the story about Rama's deal with the devil and make it so Sita and Rama could be together. I wanted the story to be more filled with love than the original. The original was too cold. That's just the hopeless romantic in me.
Bibliography:
Ramayana, Naryan
Great job on elaborating on Sita's walk through the fire! While reading Narayan's version of the Ramayana I felt he quickly skimmed over the amazement that Sita did not burn. I like how you brought Agni more into the story as well. In the paragraph where you have Agni choosing to spare Sita's life maybe you can add a sentence or two stating how Agni knew she had stayed true to Rama all those years. Maybe every time a fire is burning Agni can watch through the fire what is happening and could see Sita was always true. Other than that I thought your story was very captivating in how you switched up the story line of Sita misunderstanding why Rama could not be with her.
ReplyDeleteThe original story was a bit cold for me, too, so I can understand the impulse to re-write it. I like how you draw out Sita's journey through the fire, one step at a time. I agree with Candace that a few sentences devoted to Sita's innocence would be helpful; as it is now, this trial seems to prove Sita's devotion to Agni more than her fidelity to Rama. Overall, I'm glad your story is able to end with Sita and Rama together, no caveats or concerns on the horizon. I do wonder, though, whether Rama gets off a little too easy on his pact. It was supposed to be either him or Sita, right? While Sita vindicates herself through her devotion to Agni, I feel like maybe Rama should have to undergo some realization, trial, or change of heart as well. Perhaps one which teaches him to value love and his bond with Sita more than his role as a ruler and a warrior?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the story!
I very much enjoyed your story as I am too a hopeless romantic! It was interesting how you made Agni more of the focus of the story rather than Rami and Sita (even though they were still a main part of it, just not as “main” as Agni..or so that’s how I perceived it). It was nice to show the concept of determination and how far it can take you. The love that Sita and Rama have for each other is truly a beautiful one. Overall, it was a great story. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteI'm happy that you chose to continue your story from last week because it did seem to end rather abruptly. This continuation definitely did a great job of expounding on Sita's determination to prove the strength of her bond with Rama, but it may have been more effective to describe Rama's side as well. For example, it's understood that Sita's penance is what wins over Agni, but having roped Rama into the deal in the first place, were there not any other hoops for him to go through before he received the god's approval?
ReplyDeleteHi! I really liked how you changed the ending of this story. It was the happy ending that Sita really deserved. I did not get the problem with Rama and Agni so I was a little confused on that part but other than that it was really fun to read.
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