Curse of Mata Sita – The Reason Why Some Hindu Temple Priests are Greedy for Money

Hindu devotees who have visited some of the most popular temples in India might have had numerous experiences of greedy temple priests, or Pandas, demanding more money. They are never satisfied with the normal token amount. Some priests are always on the look out to cheat innocent devotees. And fights between pandas over sharing money are very common. It is believed that the Pandas are greedy due to a curse of Mata Sita.

Anita Ratnam who had to face such greedy priests writes about the curse in the New Indian Express 

While performing the annual rituals for my parents at Gaya, I heard this amazing story from the Ramayana.

After Lord Ram, Mata Sita and Lakshman had left Ayodhya for the forests, they received news of King Dasaratha’s demise. The two brothers immediately went to the banks of the Phalguni River in Gaya and performed their prayers for the passing of the soul. 

Meanwhile, King Dasaratha’s hungry spirit demanded food from Mata Sita. Reluctantly she rolled some wet mud and fed her father -in-law because she was not allowed to give rice until the prayers were concluded. 

Lord Ram and Lakshman had closed their eyes in prayer but the Pandas, or priests, saw Mata Sita’s giving rice to King Dashrath. 

Completing the pujas, Rama served rice for his father’s spirit only to find that it did not appear to take the offering as it was satisfied with Mata Sita’s offering. Sita told Lord Ram of what she had done. Unconvinced, Lord Ram demanded a witness. 

Mata Sita requested the pandas to verify her act of feeding. Unwilling to get involved in a domestic squabble the priests remained silent.

Enraged, Mata Sita uttered this curse. “For your betrayal you shall never be satisfied. However much you get, you will always want more.” 

It was an Akshaya tree that finally bore witness for Mata Sita while the pandas morphed into the avatars of avarice.