divine day is considered to be a
human year, the twelve-year cycle is
established. According to popular
belief, at each Kumbha Mela’s most
providential moment, the waters in
which people are bathing become the
nectar of immortality, and all those
who bathe in these waters gain
immeasurable religious merit.
Historically speaking, the two most
important sites have been Haridwar and
Allahabad; one measure of their domi-
nance is that they have held “half”
(ardha) Kumbha Melas after six years,
and that these have consistently drawn
bigger crowds than the “full” Kumbha
Melas at Ujjain and Nasik, which fall
during those times. In recent times,
however, political considerations have
increased the attendance at the
Sinhastha Mela. Ujjain is located in cen-
tral India, in the heartland of the Hindu
nationalist groups such as the Rashtriya
Svayamsevak Sangh, Vishva Hindu
Parishad, and Bharatiya Janata Party.
The city of Ujjain is also close to the
ancestral kingdom of Vijaya Raje
Scindia, the matriarch of a former royal
family and a prominent figure in the
Bharatiya Janata Party. In such a politi-
cal climate and local environment, the
Sinhastha Mela has been seen as a good
opportunity for religious-political the-
ater, in order to generate publicity, deliver
patronage, and give the people in these
organizations greater status and visibility.
See also Tortoise avatar.
Sita
(“furrow”) Daughter of King Janaka,
wife of the god-prince Rama(himself
the seventh avataror incarnation of the
god Vishnu), and the major female
character in the Ramayana, the earlier
of the two great Sanskritepics. Unlike
many other Hindu goddesses, Sita’s
identity stems almost completely from
her husband, and she has little indepen-
dent worshipor personality of her own.
Her abduction by the demon-king
Ravanais the single major event driving
the plot of the Ramayana, prompting
her husband and his allies first to search
the earthfor her and then to fight a cli-
mactic battle to regain her, concluding
with Ravana’s death. Throughout all the
tumult Sita simply waits to be rescued,
sure that this will provide her husband
with greater glory.
According to her charter myth, Sita is
not born in the normal way but is found
in a furrow by King Janaka as he plows
his field. Sita thus carries a strong asso-
ciation with the earth, fertility, and pros-
perity; as David Kinsley points out, her
marriage to Rama symbolizes the union
between the fecund earth and a right-
eous king that will make it prosper. Her
connection with the earth is also seen in
her disappearance, when in response to
Rama’s accusations of unfaithfulness,
she calls on the earth to swallow her up
as a witness to her chastity, and disap-
pears forever.
Sita’s primary virtue is her devotion
to her husband, and in her unflagging
love for him she is a model Hindu wife,
just as many of the Ramayana’s other
characters incarnate cultural ideals. An
early sign of her devotion is shown
when Rama has been wrongly exiled in
the forest for fourteen years. Even
though Sita has never known anything
but luxury and ease, she is determined
to accompany him into exile, based on
the conviction that a faithful wife
should always accompany her hus-
band. Rama objects, reasons, and even
forbids her, but Sita does not give in—
perhaps the only time that she does
not observe her husband’s wishes. She
goes to the forest with Rama and her
brother-in-law Lakshmana, cheerfully
taking on the difficult life of an ascetic,
since this means she can remain with
her husband.
The more difficult test of her devo-
tion to her husband comes when she is
abducted and held captive by Ravana.
She holds steadfast despite Ravana’s
unceasing persuasion, threats, and
attempts to convince her that Rama has
been killed. According to one story, the
only part of Ravana that she ever sees is
his feet, since as a devoted wife she keptSita