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Why was Sitā criticized ?
Once, Sudarśana muni was performing penance by meditating in a standing posture called Kāyotsarga. Thousands of people would gather to pay obeisance to him. Once, Vegavati jokingly told the people that she had seen the sadhu in the company of a woman. She further said that the muni was not as great as the people thought him to be. She rebuked the people for their blind faith in a debaucher, masquerading as a muni. The people believed her and began to criticize the muni, but the muni never spoke a angry word either to Vegavati or to the people, for he had developed Samatābhāva i.e. tolerance
Yet, he decided that he would not end his Kayotsarga as long as he would absolve from this crime, which he had not committed. A diety, who was devoted to the great Sudarśana muni, turned Vegavati's face black. Her father Sribhuti realised the grave mistake which his daughter had committed and he reprimanded her in very harsh words. The terrified Vegavati declared in front of a congregation that the muni's conduct was above any reproach. She further said that she made these false and baseless allegations only to observe the patience of the muni and finally begged for pardon. She then became a Sravikā, laywoman of a very high spiritual stature, and was elevated to a fifth celestial world after her death. When she was born as Sita, she was blamed by the people of Ayodhyā because she didn't confess in her previous life for commiting the sin of blaming the muni.
Why did Sitā become the cause of Rāvana's death?
King Sambhu (Rāvana), enticed by the beauty of Vegavati (Sita), made a formal proposal to her father Sribhuti (Laksmana). He refused it because the king was not the follower of Jainism. Thus enraged, the king murdered him and raped her daughter Vegavati. Vegavati cursed him saying that she will be the cause of his death in future. Hence, Vegavati, who was born as Sitā, became the cause of his death
The soul of King Sambhu transmigrated and was born as Prabhāsa brahmin. He was initiated into Diksā by Vijayasena muni. Once, the ascetic Prabhāsa muni noticed a king of vidhyadhars named Kanakadhvaja, flying with his entire retinue towards the Sammeta śikharaji for a pilgrimage. His granduer
made him resemble Indra, the emperor of dieties. Prabhasamuni, influenced by the granduer of Kanakadhvaja, wished to possess his granduer by the power of his penance. After death, he was reborn as a diety in the third celestial world and from there, he was born as Prativasudeva Rāvana. He was the ruler of three divisions of Bharata. Due to his ill deeds, he went to the fourth hell after his death. The brahmin Yagyavalkya, who was the friend of Vasudatta and Dhanadatta, transmigrated through many lives and was born as Bibhişaņa.
How did Śrībhūti become Laksmana?
Sribhuti, who was murdered by his master, King Sambhu, was elevated to the celestial world. From there, he was born as Punarvasu, a vidyadhara at the Supratisthitapura. Once, overcome by his carnal desires, he abducted Princess Anamngasundari, the daughter of Cakravarti Tribhuvanananda of Pundarikavijaya nagara. The king sent his vidyadharas to catch him. Punarvasu was badly wounded, while fighting with the vidyadharas. Anangasundari fell off from the aircraft. Fortunately, she fell on the thick cluster of creepers and was saved. Punarvasu desired to have Anangasundari for himself, but his desire remained unfulfilled. Then, he became an ascetic, but heart in heart, he wanted Anangasundari to be his life partner in return of the virtue that he would acquire as an ascetic. After he completed his tenure on the earth as an ascetic, he was elevated in the celestial world, from there, he was born as Lakşmana.
Anangasundari made the forest her new abode and practiced austere penance. Finally, she stopped consuming food. She became very frail. One day, a python swallowed her. She was elevated to the celestial world called lśana devaloka as a goddess. She was then born on the earth as Princess Visalvā. The virtue, that she had acquired by her penance in her pre-birth as Anangasundari, was still intact, therefore she neutralized the power of Amoghvijaya vidya.
The lines of karmas are strange. Laksmana and Sitā, in their pre-births, were father and daugh
