Sita asks Rama to capture a golden deer (Thai Ramayana mural)
About this photograph
- Creator
- Margery H. Freeman
- Date created
- Unknown
- Location
- Bangkok, Thailand
- License
- This photograph copyright ©2006. Terms of use
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A mural at the Emerald Buddha Temple depicts Sita asking Rama to capture a golden deer.
Both Rama and Sita sit together on the veranda of an elegant pavillion. Sita leans towards Rama as if posing her request that he capture the golden deer for her. The deer is really a demon in disguise sent to lure Rama and Laksman away from Sita so that she can be kidnapped by the demon king Ravana.
On the lower right of the image, part of the next scene is shown where Rama is leaving Sita’s pavillion and asking Laksman to guard her while he, Rama, is away pursuing the deer. Note that Rama thus appears twice in the same image to convey sequential action.
To get Laksman out of the way, a demon later imitates Rama’s voice calling for help from the forest. Laksman then goes to his aid, while Sita is left alone and is abducted.
