Like Two Bodies, One Soul
I am Vishnu, as Rama
I have tried really hard not to think about you, Sita, but I have
failed. Therefor, I have made this statue of gold so that I can still
tell you how I feel in my heart.
From the first time I saw you, I knew inside my soul that you were the one for me. You looked beautiful that day in your balcony when I first came to Videha. I was really happy by the end of that day when our marriage proposal was set in stone. That had to be one of the most amazing days of my life. When I married you, everyone in Ayodhya loved you as well. You became my soul mate, not only bound to me by the laws of our marriage, but also by my heart and soul.
You became my support and my lifelong companion. Even when I was sent in to exile in the forest, you willingly gave up the riches of a queen to lead the life of a hermit with me. I couldn't give you any jewels, nor buy you new clothes, but you still followed me. You showed me that you truly meant what you said that day, before leaving for exile when you told me: "Where ever you go, that is where my happiness follows." I was certainly glad that you came with me. I couldn't imagine living without you, especially because I couldn't survive for a minute without being near you.
You showed your faith in me, and bestowed your full trust in me when you followed. You respected me as I respected you, and trusted that I will keep you safe. That day, in the forest near our home, when you saw that deer and asked me for it, I couldn't refuse. You hadn't asked me for anything since the day we left Ayodhya. Nevertheless, I wish so much that I had listened to Lakshmana that day. But that demon came in a disguise and I was blinded by our love. I feel like I should have been there with you, protecting you. I am really sorry, Sita. Please forgive me. Know that I still love you, and which is why I set out to rescue you immediately after.
You were taken from me, and it felt like that would be for forever. I knew that you would never betray me, or be disloyal to me. I trusted you with my whole heart. Our love is eternal and I could never point a finger at it in question. It was very hard for me when, later on, I had to let you go again. I had to let you go for good, sending you into exile by yourself, pregnant with our children. My heart was ripped into a million pieces the day I sent you in to exile by yourself. I was just overwhelmed with the number of questions that were raised. I couldn't take it anymore. I hope you will understand that as long as I live, no matter where I send you, I will love you and only you, Sita.
That day when I found your letter in your palace, I knew that you weren't coming back when I read it...
From the first time I saw you, I knew inside my soul that you were the one for me. You looked beautiful that day in your balcony when I first came to Videha. I was really happy by the end of that day when our marriage proposal was set in stone. That had to be one of the most amazing days of my life. When I married you, everyone in Ayodhya loved you as well. You became my soul mate, not only bound to me by the laws of our marriage, but also by my heart and soul.
You became my support and my lifelong companion. Even when I was sent in to exile in the forest, you willingly gave up the riches of a queen to lead the life of a hermit with me. I couldn't give you any jewels, nor buy you new clothes, but you still followed me. You showed me that you truly meant what you said that day, before leaving for exile when you told me: "Where ever you go, that is where my happiness follows." I was certainly glad that you came with me. I couldn't imagine living without you, especially because I couldn't survive for a minute without being near you.
You showed your faith in me, and bestowed your full trust in me when you followed. You respected me as I respected you, and trusted that I will keep you safe. That day, in the forest near our home, when you saw that deer and asked me for it, I couldn't refuse. You hadn't asked me for anything since the day we left Ayodhya. Nevertheless, I wish so much that I had listened to Lakshmana that day. But that demon came in a disguise and I was blinded by our love. I feel like I should have been there with you, protecting you. I am really sorry, Sita. Please forgive me. Know that I still love you, and which is why I set out to rescue you immediately after.
You were taken from me, and it felt like that would be for forever. I knew that you would never betray me, or be disloyal to me. I trusted you with my whole heart. Our love is eternal and I could never point a finger at it in question. It was very hard for me when, later on, I had to let you go again. I had to let you go for good, sending you into exile by yourself, pregnant with our children. My heart was ripped into a million pieces the day I sent you in to exile by yourself. I was just overwhelmed with the number of questions that were raised. I couldn't take it anymore. I hope you will understand that as long as I live, no matter where I send you, I will love you and only you, Sita.
That day when I found your letter in your palace, I knew that you weren't coming back when I read it...
To my dearest
Rama,
When
I first saw you, I thought,
"My word! Who is this gorgeous guy?"
My heart was pounding inside me and I was becoming restless. I couldn't
concentrate nor rest, even for a minute. It felt like my heart and my
soul had both left my body and gravitated towards you. I wanted to see
you again, and was relieved to know that I would not have to wait long
after I saw
you enter the palace. My servant girl arrived later that day, asking
for my answer to the marriage proposal that had been made. She saw it
in my eyes and immediately knew my answer. She told me that she had
never seen me that happy, ever. Our marriage was a dream come true for
me. You were exactly the prince charming who I had been waiting for
since
childhood. My marriage had a fairy-tale beginning that day, and the
years
in Ayodhya that followed were the happily-ever-afters.
The jewels, clothes, and all the luxuries of being a queen meant nothing to me and so when your father sent you into exile, I willingly followed. You are my riches, and my luxuries come with being with you. Even if we lived the life of hermits, I was happy in our small little world. You always took good care of me, and trusted that I would do no harm to myself or to anyone else. You respected me and my wish to come with you, and you were always so compassionate towards me. You always protected me from harm's way and even had Lakshmana protect me in your absence.
I know you must be blaming yourself for not protecting me that day when I was abducted by Ravana. It was my fault! I shouldn't have told Lakshmana to run after you, especially when he did not want to leave me alone. The days that I spent in Lanka were equivalent to hell. I refused Ravana every day and told him that I would rather die than to be disloyal and betray you. He eventually got the idea that I would never be anyone else but Rama's. I belong to you and only you.
The too short moments that I had spent with you after you rescued me did eventually come to a halt too. I knew it was too good to be true. I had many questions when you decided to send me to exile by myself but before I left Ayodhya, I had only enough time to write you this letter. I knew that you trusted me and that our love was truly pure. I knew that you would never be able to love another but still you sent me away. My heart was heavy with shock and I was so much in pain that all I wanted was to end my life. But I knew, once again, and trusted that you made the right decision for the both of us. Oh, how much I wanted you to ask me to come back!
The jewels, clothes, and all the luxuries of being a queen meant nothing to me and so when your father sent you into exile, I willingly followed. You are my riches, and my luxuries come with being with you. Even if we lived the life of hermits, I was happy in our small little world. You always took good care of me, and trusted that I would do no harm to myself or to anyone else. You respected me and my wish to come with you, and you were always so compassionate towards me. You always protected me from harm's way and even had Lakshmana protect me in your absence.
I know you must be blaming yourself for not protecting me that day when I was abducted by Ravana. It was my fault! I shouldn't have told Lakshmana to run after you, especially when he did not want to leave me alone. The days that I spent in Lanka were equivalent to hell. I refused Ravana every day and told him that I would rather die than to be disloyal and betray you. He eventually got the idea that I would never be anyone else but Rama's. I belong to you and only you.
The too short moments that I had spent with you after you rescued me did eventually come to a halt too. I knew it was too good to be true. I had many questions when you decided to send me to exile by myself but before I left Ayodhya, I had only enough time to write you this letter. I knew that you trusted me and that our love was truly pure. I knew that you would never be able to love another but still you sent me away. My heart was heavy with shock and I was so much in pain that all I wanted was to end my life. But I knew, once again, and trusted that you made the right decision for the both of us. Oh, how much I wanted you to ask me to come back!
I
write you this letter in my palace in hopes that you will find it some
day. I want you to know that we may be apart,
but we are still
Like Two Bodies, One Soul...
Like Two Bodies, One Soul...
Forever
yours,
Sita
Sita
Author's Note:
The different aspects of love that
were not mentioned in R. K.
Narayan's Ramayana as well as William Buck's Ramayana were here taken
and further analyzed.
I wanted to emphasize on the truth and purity of Rama and Sita's love
and I have done that by having the main characters tell us about their
feelings. I have simply added emotional details of Rama and Sita's love
incidents
from the beginning of their love story, like from the first time they
saw each other, to the end. I took the love
at first sight
incident to tell the readers about the thoughts that might have run
through Rama and Sita's mind as they locked eyes. Some of the most
important things that I have mentioned here that I took from the books
are: the fact that Rama's father had sent him in to exile, Sita
following Rama into exile with Lakshmana, the abduction of Sita through
the deer incident, and the fact that Sita was later sent in to exile by
herself by Rama. The purity and truthfulness of their love was further
portrayed
by the feelings that Sita writes of in her letter before she leaves
Ayodhya, and by the way Rama speaks to the statue of Sita.
Link back to Storybook Coverpage
Introduction
Bibliography:
- Buck, William (1976). Ramayana: King Rama's Way.
- Narayan, R. K. (1972) The Ramayana: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic.