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There are many narratives about Sita’s birth. Valmiki states that Janaka, king of Videha, is the foster father of Sita since he found her while ploughing the field. Appellations like Bhumija, Dharanisuta, Parthivi , suggest that Sita is the daughter of mother-earth and ‘not born from the womb’- ayonija. The question who is Sita’s biological father is mired in mystery.

However some folk narratives suggest Ravana fathered Sita, with his wife Mandodari. A folksong from the Dalit bards of Karnataka describe Ravana as father as well as ‘mother’ of Sita.