1984.478: Ravana's Abduction of Sita, folio from a Ramayana Series

Identification and Creation

Object Number

1984.478

Title

Ravana's Abduction of Sita, folio from a Ramayana Series

Classification

Paintings

Work Type

painting

Date

1825-1850

Places

Creation Place: South Asia, India, Himachal Pradesh, Kangra

Culture

Indian

Persistent Link

https://hvrd.art/o/216121

Physical Descriptions

Medium

Ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper; Pahari Style, Kangra School

Dimensions

image proper: 23.5 x 32.4 cm (9 1/4 x 12 3/4 in.)
paper: 34.9 x 48.3 cm (13 3/4 x 19 in.)

Inscriptions and Marks

• label: Pencil description underneath the painting of the episode pictured.: RAVANA'S ABDUCTION OF SITA.
  To the hermitage of Rama, in the wilderness of Dandaka, at Panchavati, comes Ravana the Raja of the Rakshasas or demons. He commands his minister, Maricha, to assume the shape of a beautiful deer. Sita longs for the deer's skin, and pursuades[sic] Rama to go in chase of it. Shot at length by an arrow, Maricha leaps out of the deer; as a monstrous demon and dying imitates Ramas[sic] voice and calls to Lakshmana to save him. Sita alarmed, sents Ramas[sic] brother Lakshmana to the rescue, and, while she is alone, Ravana assumes the disguise of a Brahman and is entertained by her. He invites the beautiful Sita to become his Chief Queen, and on her indignant refusal, returns to his own proper form, seizes her in his 20 arms, and carries her away in his chariot.
• inscription: Language: English
  To the hermitage of Rama, in the wilderness of Dandaka, at Panchavati, comes Ravana the Raja of the Rakshasas or demons. He commands his minister, Maricha, to assume the shape of a beautiful deer. Sita longs for the deer’s skin, and persuades Rama to go in chase of it. Shot at length, by an arrow, Maricha leaps out of the deer as a monstrous demon and dying, imitates Rama’s voice and calls to Lakshmana to save him. Sita alarmed, sends Ramasbrother Lakshmana to the rescue, and while she is alone, Ravana assumes the disguise of a Brahman and is entertained by her. He invites the beautiful Sita to become his chief queen, and on her indignant refusal, returns to his own proper form , seizes her, in his 20 arms, and carries her away in his chariot.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line

Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Philip Hofer

Accession Year

1984

Object Number

1984.478

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Contact

am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

Permissions

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Descriptions

Description

The painting represents a scene from the Sanskrit epic, the Ramayana (Story of Rama). Ravana, the demon king of Lanka, wants to abduct Sita, the wife of Rama, who is the seventh avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. Rama had created a protective barrier around his wife to keep her out of harm’s way while they, and Rama’s brother, Lakshmana, were in exile. Ravana knew of this and devised a plan to force Sita to go beyond the barrier. He asks his minister, Maricha, to take the shape of a beautiful deer. Sita catches sight of this deer and longs for its hide. She asks Rama, a skilled archer, to kill it for her. Rama goes out into the forest to hunt the deer. He manages to deliver a fatal blow. Maricha, leaps out of the deer’s body, and, in his dying breath, mimics Rama and calls for Lakshmana’s help. Lakshmana leaves Sita to find his brother. While Sita is alone, Ravana comes disguised as an ascetic, asking for help. He lures Sita beyond the barrier and immediately transforms into his demonic self, with ten heads and twenty arms and abducts her to Lanka in his chariot.

The painting depicts a continuous narrative. In the center, Sita is shown reluctantly leaves the hut to converse with Ravana in the form of a Hindu ascetic. Immediately to the right, Ravana depicted with his iconic ten heads and twenty arms, holds onto Sita while he rides away in his donkey-drawn chariot. In the top left corner, Rama is shown delivering the fatal shot to Maricha in the form of a deer. Maricha’s demonic form, with a blue head and orange body, tumbles on the left side. In the far right corner is Lakshmana his bow at the ready, coming towards Rama.

The inscription below the painting describes the scene from the Ramayana that the rendering depicts. However, there are some errors in the description. Pahari Style, Kangra School.

Exhibition History

• ReVisions, Indian Artists Engaging Traditions , Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, 04/04/2009 - 01/10/2010
• The Rama Epic: Hero, Heroine, Ally, Foe, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, San Francisco, 10/21/2016 - 01/15/2017

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