Week 4 Story: The Plight of Bhumi

The Plight of Bhumi

Sometimes, it just becomes too much.

I know you all know me. You have to know me; you wouldn't be alive if it weren't for me. I've been around for nearly 4.5 billion years, and have sustained every single life form to ever exist on this planet. From that ancient dinosaur whose bones are deep underneath your yard to the bacteria that caused your illness the other day, I've sustained all life. I'm behind the plants and animals you eat, the water that quenches your thirst, and the zephyr that cools your skin - be grateful that I'm here.

Usually, I keep to myself in the background. I know (at least, hope) that you all know you rely on me for sustenance, and I just let you be.

That is, until I saw the terrible woes of my daughter, Sita.

As the queen of Ayodhya and the wife of Rama, she's enjoyed a fair share of honor in her life. She's an incredibly pious and respectable woman, dedicated to her family and extremely gentle and caring. Why, then, did the great Rama have to test her integrity via fire after he went to such great lengths to retrieve her from Lanka? It angered me, just as it may anger any other woman, but I let it be. Sita was eager to prove her integrity, so it was her choice to do so.

As if that wasn't enough, the great Rama sent her to exile after being unable to deal with the citizens' rumors. O, Great Vishnu! How could it be that you be both the protector of the universe and the bestower of such great injustice all in one? You, who protected me as the Varaha avatar from the demon Hiranyakashapa? How it pained me to see my daughter leave Ayodhya like that, as if she had something to be ashamed of. I will not lie; it angered me. But, again, I let it be. I reasoned that perhaps, in some ways, it would be a learning experience for her - and it was. She gave birth to my grandsons, Lava and Kusha, and brought them up in a pious environment amongst happy, simple folk.

Oh, how those two recited Valmiki's tale of Rama, so piously, so devotedly, as if there was none greater than that tale! Unbeknownst to them, Rama was their father - yes, the father who banished their mother into the woods. I looked forward to a rekindling of sorts when Rama found out that those two twins were his sons.

But, no. He asked my precious daughter Sita to undergo another test of integrity before she were to return to Ayodhya. How unacceptable that a man, even as an avatar of Vishnu, subject his wife to humiliation.

I'm coming, my dear Sita. You can return to my side, where you will experience no further embarrassment. I'm here to accept you.

A picture depicting Varaha (an avatar of Vishnu as a boar) carrying Earth on his tusks to protect her from a demon. Source.

Author's Note: This story is based off of the original storyline in which Rama agrees to accept Sita back to Ayodhya, but only if she undergoes another integrity test. Instead, she decides to return back to her mother, Goddess Bhumi (Earth), having decided that enough was enough. I decided to write this from the perspective of the Earth as Sita's mother.

Bibliography: "Sita returns to Bhumi" from the PDE Ramayana. Source.