Fanny Hebert-Chasse

Professor Zylberberg

Sex and Gender

9 September 2022

Reflection 1

Myths are accounts of their time as they exemplify the values and norms of the culture they originate

from. The story of Osiris and Isis as well as the Ramayana reveal clearly how sexuality and each gender

were perceived in ancient Egypt and in India.

In the first story mentioned, sexuality is discussed freely. Isis and Osiris, being siblings, started hav-

ing sex in the whomb. Further, when Osiris died his wife went out of her way to reassemble his body and

recreate his missing penis hoping to impregnate herself with it. This goes to show how passionate, in ev-

ery aspect, their relationship was. They were in fact said to be soulmates. Sadly, Seth, who was jealous of

his siblings, tried to separate the two Gods by killing Osiris. Even if he did succeed, the trust they shared

could never be broken as shown by Isis’ search for her husband’s coffin. When she brought the body

back to Egypt, Seth cut it into pieces and then dispersed the body parts over a wide area. Isis once again

went looking for her husband’s remains and then reconstructed his body, which shows how devoted she

was. This allowed her to have Osiris’ child, Horus, another example of her devotion. The child brought

the couple closer together since Isis was able to protect the child from snakes, scorpions and more impor-

tantly, from Seth, something she was not able to do for Osiris. Horus then spent his life, with the help of

Isis, trying to avenge and honor his father. Now, Sita and Rama had a completely different relationship.

Throughout the whole story, Sita’s chastity is constantly questioned. Because of how sexuality was per-

ceived in the kingdom, it is safe to assume that the physical aspect of their relationship was not particu-

larly important. Sita and Rama were undeniably deeply in love with one another. Unfortunately, for

Rama, being a respected king was more important than being a good husband. His reputation meant ev-

erything to him which is why “despite the fact that he was certain of chastity and loyalty”, he left her
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alone in the forest (Geller). Still, Sita is an extremely devoted and loyal wife. She will go to extreme

lengths to prove her purity. The sons almost brought Sita and Rama back together at the end, but the king

doubted once again his wife’s loyalty and that was too much for Sita. Having children did not have any

major effect on their relationship as Rama sent his wife into exile knowing she was pregnant and then

questioned her loyalty even though she had raised their two kids alone.

Physically, Isis and Osiris’ relation was way more developed. It is an integral part of their marriage

whereas for Sita and Rama, it feels more like a marital responsibility. Sita and Isis are similar because of

their devotion and unconditional loyalty. In each myth, this is put to test when they are confronted with

the attention of another man. Seth did not manage to get between Isis and Osiris, but Ravana did do some

damage to Sita and Rama’s relationship. Even if “Sita resolutely rejects Ravana’s attention”, Rama

doubts her chastity (Encyclopedia Britannica). The husbands, for different reasons, were not able to recip-

rocate this devotion. In fact, both marriages were in a way one-sided. Sita was the one having to con-

stantly prove her purity. In Isis’ case, her husband was simply dead. Sita and Isis raised their children

alone. Horus clearly was more attached to his dad than Sita’s sons did.

Sexuality does not seem to be taboo in any of the two religions as it is mentioned, directly and indi-

rectly, more than once in both myths. However, given the importance placed on purity in the Ramayana,

sexuality in Hinduism is restricted to marital sex. Sexuality is discussed much more freely in Isis and

Osiris’ story. It seems to be nothing more than a manifestation of their love. They had sex before even be-

ing born.

Ancient Egypt seems to be more advanced when it comes to gender equity. Isis and Osiris were rela-

tively equal in regards to their relationship as well social status, especially since they came from the same

family. The sister was well perceived in their society, she even became the goddess of protection because

of “the shelter she afforded her child” (Tyldesley). Conversely, Sita was not truly respected in the king-
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dom as the doubts concerning her chastity were overshadowing her devotion for her husband and her

kids. In the Hindu tradition, Sita and Rama represent the ideal Indian couple, in other words, the perfect

man and the perfect woman. However, it is definitely not an example of gender equity. According to the

Ramyana, a woman’s place is in the house alongside her husband. When Sita stepped out of the circle of

safety around the house, also called the Lakshman’s line, she instantly got kidnapped by Ravana. It insin-

uates that the woman puts herself in danger by leaving the house, and thus it is her fault if something hap-

pens. The wife is also the one that owes purity to her husband. In fact, when the two characters reunited,

no one ever questioned Rama’s chastity, the focus was only on his wife. This myth also indirectly claims

that it is admirable for the husband to put his reputation and honor before his wife’s overall well-being.
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Works Cited

Geller, Prof. “Sita.” Mythology.net. 1 Dec. 2016. https://mythology.net/hindu/hindu-gods/sita/w

"Ramayana". Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 May. 2020,

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Ramayana-Indian-epic.

Tyldesley, Joyce. "Isis: Egyptian goddess". Encyclopedia Britannica. Apl 7 2010.

www.britannica.com/topic/Isis-Egyptian-goddess