In some later versions of the Ramayana, the exiled Lord Ram and his brother Lakshman leave Sita alone in their forest dwelling one day while they hunt a golden deer, not knowing that the deer is actually a rakshasa, a kind of demon, in disguise. To protect Sita in their absence, Lakshman draws a rekha, or an enchanted line, around their home; anyone who tries to cross it except Ram, Lakshman, and Sita will be burned to death by flames that erupt from the line. But the demon king Ravana disguises himself as a beggar and comes to Sita’s door asking for alms, and she crosses the line to give him
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