Come, Play with Me: Sītā, Agency and Presentist Concerns

Abstract

Using some renditions of Sītā stories from the epic Rāmāyaṇa, this article will endeavor to make a case for reflecting on presentist concerns and interests and being aware of their impact on scholarship. Arguably, narrow syntactical and semantic analyses of translations and of purported convergences in historical and linguistic analyses do not suffice to give a handle on understanding how these concerns and interests might influence selection of pertinent sources and their readings. A more sustained analysis of their impact is needed. Shun Kwong-loi’s methodological work provides a good ground to take that conversation forward.