How Long Did Sītā Live?

There are numerous references in the Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa that help decipher Sītā's age. One of the earliest references is her age at the time of exile. In the Araṇya Kāṇḍa, Sītā recounts to Rāvaṇa that she was eighteen years old, and her husband was twenty-five when they were exiled.

mama bhartā mahātejā vayasā paṃca viṃśakaḥ || (VR: 3-47-10)

aṣṭā daśa hi varṣāṇi mama janmani gaṇyate |

Meaning: “My husband who was very bold was twenty-five years and I had completed eighteen years since my birth.”

Additionally, her age at the time of marriage can be inferred from her conversation with Hanumān in the Aśoka Vana, where she mentions spending twelve years in Rāma's household, enjoying a pleasant life.

samā dvādaśa tatra aham rāghavasya niveśane || (VR: 5-33-17)

bhunjānā mānuṣān bhogān sarva kāma samṛddhinī |

Meaning: “I enjoyed worldly pleasures in abundance for twelve years at Rama's abode.”

By subtracting twelve from eighteen, it can be deduced that she was married at the age of six.

After spending fourteen years in exile, Sītā returned to Ayodhya at the age of 32, where she became queen. However, within two years, she was sent to the forest by Rāma, at which time she was pregnant. It was during this period that she gave birth to her twin sons.

Śatrughna happened to be visiting Vālmīki's āśrama on the very night of their birth. At that time, Śatrughna was en route to Madhuvana (Mathura) to vanquish Lavanāsura, and Rāma's children were born during his brief stay at the āśrama.

Subsequently, Śatrughna returned to Ayodhyā after twelve-years. During his journey back, he spent a night at Vālmīki's āśrama, where he overheard Rāma's sons rehearsing the Rāmāyaṇa, which had been taught to them by Vālmīki. Based on Śatrughna's return timeline, it is inferred that Rāma's sons were twelve years old by then. Consequently, Sītā's age at this point would have been 32 + 2 + 12 = 46 years.

In the same year, Rāma initiated the Aśvamedha yajña, during which his sons recited the Rāmāyaṇa, which they had learned from Vālmīki. Recognizing them as his children, Rāma desired Sītā's presence. Upon her arrival, Rāma asked her to take an oath (śapatha), which she did, invoking Mother Earth. As a result, she was swallowed by the Earth, marking the end of her mortal life on earth.

The sequence of Sītā's age at different events

·       Marriage – 6 years

·       Started exile – 18 years

·       Exile – 14 years

·       Return from exile – at 32 years

·       Lived as a queen – 2 years (approximately)

·       Sent to forest – at 34 years

·       As a mother – 12 years = age (34+12 = 46 years)

·       Left the world = at 46 years (approximately)

Thus, Sītā's lifespan as a human being was approximately 46 years. Within this period, she spent time with Rāma from age 6 to 34. Excluding one year of her stay in Aśoka Vana, this translates to 28 minus 1, resulting in a maximum of 27 years spent with Rāma.

Building upon my previous article , the 27-year duration of Sītā's life with Rāma was equated to 10,000 years by ancient commentators. This equivalence matches with the Vedic principle "Ahorātraṃ saṃvatsaraḥ", which states that one day and night is equal to one year.

In the Vedic calendar, one year consists of 360 days, with the Sun moving at a rate of one degree per day, covering 360 degrees in a year. Applying the "Ahorātraṃ saṃvatsaraḥ" principle, we can convert 10,000 years to 10,000 days.

Dividing 10,000 days by 360 (days per year), i.e., 10000 ÷ 360, we arrive at approximately 27.77 years, which closely matches the 27 years that Sītā lived with Rāma.

This calculation suggests that ancient commentators employed the "Ahorātraṃ saṃvatsaraḥ" principle to justify the attribution of 10,000 years to Sītā and Rāma's time together, despite Vālmīki not explicitly stating this.

This rationale provides insight into the interpretation of verses such as "daśa varṣa sahasrāṇi daśa varṣa śatāni ca" (VR: 1-1-97 and 1-15-29), where 10,000 and 1000 years are separately mentioned. By applying the "Ahorātraṃ saṃvatsaraḥ" principle, the commentators equated 10,000 years with approximately 27.77 years, that was the duration of time spent by Sītā and Rāma together. 

According to the Upanyāsaka-s, the remaining 1000 years are said to represent the time Rāma spent without Sītā. Applying the same calculation, 1000 years is equivalent to 1000 days.

Converting these 1000 days to years, we get 1000 ÷ 360 = 2.77 years. This suggests that Rāma lived for approximately 2 years and 6-7 months after Sītā's departure from mortal life.

This information also provides a basis for calculating Rāma's age, which I leave for readers to explore. In my forthcoming book, I will present various calculations proposed by ancient scholars, offering a deeper understanding of the epic's chronology.

 

Related article: Rāma's 11,000-Year Rule According to Vālmīki