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JAIN RAMAYAN
man, Angadh, Shatrughna and the other kings and princess entreated Sita.
"Revered Queen ! Be so gracious as to step into Ayodhya and to hallow the city. Kindly grant our entreaty.”
"Dear child! I will surely enter Ayodhya but before that my purity and my chastity should be proved. I am determined not to enter the city until the stain on my character has been completely removed.”
Lakshman saluted Sita and approached Shri Ram and informed him of Sita's determination. Shri Ram also.desired this. Seeing Shri Ram coming towards her, Sita stood up.
Shri Ram's face was serious. It showed his sense of justice and fair-play. His respect for the law had paralysed his affection for Sita. All his affection for Sita seemed to have disappeared. He seemed to have no tenderness for Sita. He said in a serious and stern voice : "Sita! If your chastity remains unaffected inspite of your having been in Ravan's kingdom, prove it before all these people.'
A smile appeared in Sita's face. The smile was not an expression of joy but it was a devious expression of her deepseated grief. She gave her consent to go through the ordeal as desired by Shri Ram. For years, she had been desiring to speak out her mind and now she began to speak out. She lifted her head; her eyes looked serious and she began to speak out in a sharp voice.
"Ah! Revered Lord ! No one in this world can be so great, so learned and so fair as you are. Even without making an effort to find out whether I was guilty or innocent, you abandoned me and sent me away to the forest. You are indeed great. You are indeed the noblest scion of Ikshwaku dynasty. You punished me before proving my guilt. Today you want me to go through the fire ordeal. Oh! How lofty you are and how thoughtful and sensible and magnanimous you are ! Undoubtedly you are sagacious and wise. That is why you have been subjecting me to all kinds of severe tests and ordeals without think
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