॥ दोहा ॥
बन्दौ चरण सरोज निज जनक लली सुख धाम ।
राम प्रिय किरपा करें सुमिरौं आठों धाम ॥
कीरति गाथा जो पढ़ें सुधरैं सगरे काम ।
मन मन्दिर बासा करें दुःख भंजन सिया राम ॥
॥ चौपाई ॥
राम प्रिया रघुपति रघुराई । बैदेही की कीरत गाई ॥१॥
चरण कमल बन्दों सिर नाई । सिय सुरसरि सब पाप नसाई ॥२॥
जनक दुलारी राघव प्यारी । भरत लखन शत्रुहन वारी ॥३॥
दिव्या धरा सों उपजी सीता । मिथिलेश्वर भयो नेह अतीता ॥४॥
सिया रूप भायो मनवा अति । रच्यो स्वयंवर जनक महीपति ॥५॥
भारी शिव धनुष खींचै जोई । सिय जयमाल साजिहैं सोई ॥६॥
भूपति नरपति रावण संगा । नाहिं करि सके शिव धनु भंगा ॥७॥
जनक निराश भए लखि कारन । जनम्यो नाहिं अवनिमोहि तारन ॥८॥
यह सुन विश्वामित्र मुस्काए । राम लखन मुनि सीस नवाए ॥९॥
आज्ञा पाई उठे रघुराई । इष्ट देव गुरु हियहिं मनाई ॥१०॥
जनक सुता गौरी सिर नावा । राम रूप उनके हिय भावा ॥११॥
मारत पलक राम कर धनु लै । खंड खंड करि पटकिन भूपै ॥१२॥
जय जयकार हुई अति भारी । आनन्दित भए सबैं नर नारी ॥१३॥
सिय चली जयमाल सम्हाले । मुदित होय ग्रीवा में डाले ॥१४॥
मंगल बाज बजे चहुँ ओरा । परे राम संग सिया के फेरा ॥१५॥
लौटी बारात अवधपुर आई । तीनों मातु करैं नोराई ॥१६॥
कैकेई कनक भवन सिय दीन्हा । मातु सुमित्रा गोदहि लीन्हा ॥१७॥
कौशल्या सूत भेंट दियो सिय । हरख अपार हुए सीता हिय ॥१८॥
सब विधि बांटी बधाई । राजतिलक कई युक्ति सुनाई ॥१९॥
मंद मती मंथरा अडाइन । राम न भरत राजपद पाइन ॥२०॥
कैकेई कोप भवन मा गइली । वचन पति सों अपनेई गहिली ॥२१॥
चौदह बरस कोप बनवासा । भरत राजपद देहि दिलासा ॥२२॥
आज्ञा मानि चले रघुराई । संग जानकी लक्षमन भाई ॥२३॥
सिय श्री राम पथ पथ भटकैं । मृग मारीचि देखि मन अटकै ॥२४॥
राम गए माया मृग मारन । रावण साधु बन्यो सिय कारन ॥२५॥
भिक्षा कै मिस लै सिय भाग्यो । लंका जाई डरावन लाग्यो ॥२६॥
राम वियोग सों सिय अकुलानी । रावण सों कही कर्कश बानी ॥२७॥
हनुमान प्रभु लाए अंगूठी । सिय चूड़ामणि दिहिन अनूठी ॥२८॥
अष्ठसिद्धि नवनिधि वर पावा । महावीर सिय शीश नवावा ॥२९॥
सेतु बाँधी प्रभु लंका जीती । भक्त विभीषण सों करि प्रीती ॥३०॥
चढ़ि विमान सिय रघुपति आए । भरत भ्रात प्रभु चरण सुहाए ॥३१॥
अवध नरेश पाई राघव से । सिय महारानी देखि हिय हुलसे ॥३२॥
रजक बोल सुनी सिय वन भेजी । लखनलाल प्रभु बात सहेजी ॥३३॥
बाल्मीक मुनि आश्रय दीन्यो । लव-कुश जन्म वहाँ पै लीन्हो ॥३४॥
विविध भाँती गुण शिक्षा दीन्हीं । दोनुह रामचरित रट लीन्ही ॥३५॥
लरिकल कै सुनि सुमधुर बानी । रामसिया सुत दुई पहिचानी ॥३६॥
भूलमानि सिय वापस लाए । राम जानकी सबहि सुहाए ॥३७॥
सती प्रमाणिकता केहि कारन । बसुंधरा सिय के हिय धारन ॥३८॥
अवनि सुता अवनी मां सोई । राम जानकी यही विधि खोई ॥३९॥
पतिव्रता मर्यादित माता । सीता सती नवावों माथा ॥४०॥
॥ दोहा ॥
जनकसुता अवनिधिया राम प्रिया लव-कुश मात ।
चरणकमल जेहि उन बसै सीता सुमिरै प्रात ॥
|| Doha ||
Bandau charan saroj nij janak lali sukha dham,
Ram priya kirpa karen sumiraun aathon dham.
Keerati gatha jo paden sudharen sagare kam,
Man mandir basa karen dukh bhanjan Siya Ram.
|| Chaupai ||
Ram priya Raghupati Raghurae, Vaidehi ki keerati gai. (1)
Charan kamal bandom sir nai, Siya Surasari sab pap nasai. (2)
Janak dulari Raghav pyari, Bharat Lakhan Shatrughan vari. (3)
Divya dhara son upaji Sita, Mithileshvar bhayo neh ateeta. (4)
Siya roop bhayo manava ati, rachyo svayamvar Janak Mahipati. (5)
Bhari Shiv dhanush khinchai joi, Siy jaymaal sajihaen soi. (6)
Bhupati narapati Ravan sanga, nahin kari sake Shiv dhanu bhanga. (7)
Janak nirash bhe lakhi karan, janmyo nahin avani mohi taran. (8)
Yah sun Vishvamitra muskaae, Ram Lakhan muni sis navaae. (9)
Ajna pai uthe Raghurae, ishta dev guru hiyahin manai. (10)
Janak suta Gauri sir nava, Ram roop unake hiy bhava. (11)
Marat palak Ram kar dhanu lai, khand khand kari patakihin bhoopai. (12)
Jay jayakaar hui ati bhari, anandita bhe sabain nar nari. (13)
Siy chali jaymaal samhale, mudit hoy greeva mein dale. (14)
Mangal baaj baje chahun ora, pare Ram sang Siya ke phera. (15)
Lauti barat Avadhpur ai, teenon matu karain norai. (16)
Kaikei kanak bhavan Siy dinha, matu Sumitra godahi linha. (17)
Kausalya sut bhet diyo Siy, harakh apaar hue Sita hiy. (18)
Sab vidhi banti badhai, rajtilak kai yukti sunai. (19)
Mand mati Manthara adain, Ram na Bharat rajpad pain. (20)
Kaikei kop bhavan ma gaili, vachan pati son apanei gahili. (21)
Chaudah baras kop banvasa, Bharat rajpad dehi dilasa. (22)
Ajna mani chale Raghurae, sang Janaki Lakshman bhai. (23)
Siy Shri Ram path path bhataken, mraga Marichi dekhi man aatke. (24)
Ram gaye maya mraga maran, Ravan sadhu banyo Siy karan. (25)
Bhiksha kai mis lai Siy bhagyo, Lanka jai daravana lagyo. (26)
Ram viyog son Siy akulani, Ravan son kahi karkash bani. (27)
Hanuman prabhu lae angoothi, Siy chudamani dihin anoothi. (28)
Asht siddhi nav nidhi var pava, Mahaveer Siy shish navava. (29)
Setu bandhi prabhu Lanka jiti, bhakt Vibhishan son kari preeti. (30)
Chadhi viman Siy Raghupati ae, Bharat bhrat prabhu charan suhae. (31)
Avadh naresh pai Raghav se, Siy maharani dekhi hiy hulase. (32)
Rajak bol suni Siy van bheji, Lakhan lal prabhu bat sahezi. (33)
Valmiki muni ashray dinya, Lav-Kush janma vahan pai linha. (34)
Vividh bhanti gun shiksha dinhin, donuh Ramcharit rat linhin. (35)
Larikala kai suni sumadhur bani, Ram Siya sut dui pahichani. (36)
Bhool mani Siy vaapas lae, Ram Janaki sabahi suhae. (37)
Sati pramaanikata kehi kaaran, Vasundhara Siy ke hiy dharan. (38)
Avani suta avani maan soi, Ram Janaki yahi vidhi khoi. (39)
Pativrta maryadit mata, Sita Sati navaon maatha. (40)
|| Doha ||
Janaksuta avanidhiya Ram priya Lav-Kush mat,
Charankamal jehi un basai Sita sumirai prat.
The Sita Chalisa is a forty-verse devotional hymn that weaves together the complete arc of Goddess Sita's life as narrated in the Valmiki Ramayana. The opening doha establishes an act of surrender — the devotee bows at the lotus feet of Janaka's daughter and invokes her grace across all directions. The forty chaupais then unfold chronologically: Sita's miraculous emergence from the earth when Janaka ploughed the field, the swayamvara where Rama alone could break Shiva's mighty bow, the joyous return of the bridal procession to Ayodhya, and the bittersweet cloud of Kaikeyi's demand that cast the royal couple into fourteen years of forest exile. The chalisa does not shy away from sorrow — it speaks plainly of Ravana's deceit and abduction, of Sita's grief during separation, and of Hanuman carrying Rama's ring as a token of hope. Victory, return, and coronation follow, yet the poem also holds space for the second exile ordered by a washerman's gossip, the solitude of Valmiki's ashram where Lava and Kusha were born, and Sita's final merging back into the earth from which she came. By remembering all these episodes, the chalisa honours not only Sita's divine nature but also her incomparable steadfastness under trial — a quality that has inspired countless devotees across centuries.
Goddess Sita, also called Janaki (daughter of Janaka), Vaidehi (princess of Videha), and Maithili (of Mithila), is one of the most revered figures in Hindu tradition. According to the Ramayana, she was discovered in a furrow of ploughed earth by King Janaka of Mithila, making her a daughter of the earth goddess Bhumi Devi. This origin signals her purity: she is born not of mortal union but of the sacred soil itself, and the earth ultimately reclaims her at the end of her earthly journey. As the consort of Lord Rama, the seventh avatar of Vishnu, Sita represents the ideal of devotion, courage, and moral fortitude. She chose to accompany Rama voluntarily into forest exile, faced the terror of Lanka with unbroken dignity, and endured a second banishment with quiet grace. Her story is not merely one of suffering — it is also one of agency, faith, and divine identity. She raised Lava and Kusha as a single mother in Valmiki's hermitage, ensuring they were educated in the Ramayana itself. Sita is worshipped across India, especially in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Nepal, and her shrine at Sitamarhi (the birthplace) and Sita Samahit Sthal (where she returned to earth) in Sitapur are active pilgrimage centres.
Friday is considered the most auspicious day for worshipping Sita, as it is associated with Shukra (Venus), the planet that governs love, beauty, and devotion. Early morning — ideally during the Brahma muhurta between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. — is the preferred time, when the mind is calm and the atmosphere is charged with spiritual energy. Evening twilight (sandhya kaal) is also suitable. During the nine days of Navratri, daily recitation of the Sita Chalisa is especially meritorious, as the festival honours the divine feminine in all her forms. Ram Navami, the birthday of Lord Rama, is another highly auspicious occasion on which reciting the Sita Chalisa alongside Ram-related prayers is considered deeply beneficial.
The Sita Chalisa follows the traditional chalisa format. The word chalisa means "forty" in Hindi, and the main body consists of 40 chaupais (four-line verses). These are framed by two dohas — an opening couplet that states the devotional intent and a closing couplet that completes the prayer — making the full composition 42 stanzas in total.
The Ram Chalisa praises Lord Rama — his divine exploits, his role as an ideal king, and his victory over Ravana. The Sita Chalisa, by contrast, centres entirely on Goddess Sita, tracing her life story from her miraculous birth through her marriage, exile, abduction, rescue, second exile, and final return to earth. While both chalisas cover events of the Ramayana, each foregrounds a different divine perspective and invokes a different quality of grace.
The Sita Chalisa is an open devotional text with no gender or caste restrictions. Devotees of all backgrounds may recite it. Women often find particular resonance with Sita's story of courage and endurance, but the chalisa is equally meaningful for men seeking blessings related to family harmony, truthfulness, and devotional discipline. Children may also listen to or recite it under parental guidance.
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Sita Mata: the Chalisa as a hymn to enduring grace
The Sita Chalisa honours Janakanandinī — the beloved daughter of King Janaka, Earth-daughter (Bhumija), and the eternal consort of Lord Rama — through forty verses that celebrate not only her divine birth and beauty but above all the quality that makes Sita the supreme exemplar for millions of devotees: her unshakeable inner dignity and devotion through the most extreme trials. The Chalisa meditates on her luminous form, the swayamvara, the forest life, and the extraordinary steadiness of her character, evoking a mood of quiet reverence and tenderness (shanta rasa infused with vatsalya and sharan). Unlike Rama, whose Chalisa and stotra traditions emphasise kingship and prowess, the devotional approach to Sita centres on grace, purity, and a compassion that never wavers.
The Sita Chalisa is recited with especial devotion on Sita Navami (also called Janaki Navami), celebrated on Vaishakha Shukla Navami, the day traditionally observed as Sita Mata's birthday. During Ramanavami as well, many devotees who worship the divine pair together will recite both the Sita Chalisa and the Ram Chalisa in sequence, honouring the inseparability of Sita-Ram as a spiritual truth. Women across northern India have long maintained the tradition of reciting this Chalisa as a daily prayer, finding in Sita's steady devotion a model that is at once celestially high and personally intimate — a mother, a daughter, a wife, and a goddess all at once.