Sita Kund, Ayodhya: The Sacred Pond of Devi Sita, Timings and Visit Guide

ॐEssential info at a glance

ॐSita Kund timings

Sita Kund is an open, sacred pond rather than a managed temple, so it has no tickets and no fixed grand aarti; it is simply accessible from sunrise to sunset, roughly 5:00 AM to 7:00 PM, and entry is free. Devotees offer their own quiet prayers and light lamps at the small Sri Ram Janaki temple beside the water. Being little-frequented, it is calm at almost any hour, and the soft light of dawn and dusk is the loveliest time for a peaceful visit.

ॐSita Kund: the pond that Sita made

Among the quiet, hidden treasures of Ayodhya is a sacred pond that bears the name, and holds the presence, of the Mother of Ayodhya herself: Sita Kund, the pond of Devi Sita. It lies at Kami Ganj, near the hill of Mani Parvat and not far from the sacred Saryu, and its story is one of the tenderest in the city. For just as Lord Ram would go daily to bathe in the holy Saryu, so, tradition tells, would his beloved Sita come daily to bathe here, in this her own pond; and the Ayodhya Mahatmya of the Skanda Purana, in the words of the sage Agastya, says something lovelier still: that this kund was created by Sita Devi herself. A sacred pool brought forth by the Goddess, bearing her name, where she came to the water each day, this is a place touched very closely by Sita, and to stand at its edge is to feel her gentle presence.

ॐLord Ram's boon to Sita's kund

There is a beautiful passage in the Skanda Purana that gives Sita Kund its special glory, and it is a moment of love between the divine couple. It tells that Lord Ram himself granted a boon to Sita concerning her pond, speaking to her tenderly: O Sita, the glories of your Sita Kund are very uncommon upon this earth; a holy bath, charity, japa and homa performed here give unlimited results; and human beings are freed from all bondage by taking a holy bath in these waters, most of all on the sacred day of Agrahayan Krishna Chaturdashi. So it is not only that Sita made this pond and bathed here; it is that Ram Himself blessed it, and gave it, for love of her, the power to liberate all who come to it in faith. That the Lord should honour his wife by making her pond a place of liberation is one of the sweetest things in all the lore of Ayodhya, and it is why devotees hold that a bath here, offered in the proper way, fulfils every heartfelt desire.

ॐSita's Ayodhya: the Sita trail

Sita Kund is one of the loveliest stops on what we might call the Sita trail, the gathering of places in Ayodhya touched by the Mother Goddess herself, for in the city of Ram, Sita too is everywhere honoured. There is Kanak Bhavan, the Golden Palace that was her own home; there is Sita Ki Rasoi, her sacred kitchen; there is Chhoti Devkali, the temple of Girija, her family goddess, brought from Mithila; and there is this, Sita Kund, her own bathing pond. To follow these places is to follow Sita through her Ayodhya, her palace, her kitchen, her goddess and her pond, and to honour the tender, gentle, feminine grace that she brings to the city of her Lord. For the many pilgrims, and especially the women, who love Mother Sita, tracing her trail is one of the sweetest devotions Ayodhya offers.

ॐA hidden, peaceful gem

Part of the charm of Sita Kund is precisely that so few find it. Unlike the thronged great temples, this quiet pond is little-frequented, and that stillness is its gift: it is, as the devout say, a perfect spot for diving into the spirit, undisturbed. It lies in the peaceful old quarter of Kami Ganj, among the ancient, gentler sacred places of Ayodhya, near the hill of Mani Parvat, which was Sita's own beloved spot, and near the nearby Vidya Kund; and beside the water stands a small Sri Ram Janaki temple, where Ram and Sita, Janaki, are enshrined together, and where a pilgrim may light a lamp and offer a quiet prayer. For the traveller who wishes to step away from the crowds and feel the older, softer, more intimate Ayodhya, Sita Kund is a small, sweet blessing.

ॐThe gentle pond of the Mother, in my own words

By Rajeev Sharma, guide with Experience My India

Sita Kund is one of the hidden places I most love to share, because so few visitors know it, and because its story is so tender. I tell my guests: just as Ram bathed every day in the Saryu, Sita came here every day to bathe, in her own pond, which the scriptures say she made herself. And then I tell them the beautiful part, that Ram Himself gave a boon to Sita about her kund, that anyone who bathes here is freed from all bondage. A husband blessing his wife's pond so that it can save others, people find that so moving.

I like to fit Sita Kund into the whole Sita trail, so my guests can follow the Mother through Ayodhya: her palace at Kanak Bhavan, her kitchen at Sita ki Rasoi, her goddess at Chhoti Devkali, and her pond here. The ladies especially love it. And I love that it is so quiet, so peaceful, near Mani Parvat which was Sita's favourite place; after the crowds of the big temples, we can stand here by the still water in silence, and light a lamp at the little Ram Janaki temple. It is one of the softest, sweetest corners of Ayodhya, and I never let a devotee of Mother Sita miss it.

In more than forty years of guiding, this is the hidden pond where the love of the divine couple most gently touches the pilgrims I bring.

ॐWhat to see and do

• Sit by the sacred Sita Kund, the pond that Sita is said to have made and where she bathed.
• Light a lamp and offer a quiet prayer at the adjacent Sri Ram Janaki temple.
• Take a holy dip, as devotees do, believing it frees from bondage and fulfils desires.
• Feel the tender presence of Mother Sita and the love of the divine couple in the peaceful water.
• Follow the Sita trail, with Kanak Bhavan, Sita Ki Rasoi and Chhoti Devkali, and the quiet Kami Ganj kunds.

ॐHow to reach Sita Kund

Sita Kund is at Kami Ganj, near the hill of Mani Parvat and the sacred Saryu, a little apart from the busy core, in the quiet old quarter of Ayodhya. It is reached on foot or by e-rickshaw.

It sits naturally with the Sita trail and the quiet Kami Ganj kunds and mounds.

ॐBest time to visit and how to plan it

• Pair it with the Sita trail and the Kami Ganj kunds and mounds.
• Allow 15 to 25 minutes for a gentle, reflective visit.

For Ayodhya, or a combined Kashi and Ayodhya pilgrimage, planned end to end, see our tour packages.

ॐAccessibility for elderly and mobility limited visitors

• It is a pond at ground level, reachable by road, gentler than the hilltop sites, though there may be steps down to the water.
• It is quiet and uncrowded, ideal for a slow, restful, contemplative visit.
• The small Ram Janaki temple and prayer can be enjoyed without descending to the water.
• We arrange transport and plan a gentle visit within your Ayodhya day.

ॐOur guided visits and Ayodhya tours

We are a Varanasi and Ayodhya based operator, a unit of Experience My India, with more than forty years of guiding pilgrims across Kashi, Ayodhya, and Prayagraj, and we have our own local guide and pandit in Ayodhya. It is a free, open site, so what we offer is the knowledge and the planning: a guide who tells the tender story of Sita's own pond and Ram's boon, a lamp and prayer at the Ram Janaki temple, and the whole Sita trail and the quiet Kami Ganj kunds woven into a fuller day of Ayodhya.

Inclusions and exclusions are stated up front, with any taxes and conditions, and no charge appears later that was not named. Entry is free; our charge is only for guiding and services. See all our tour packages for the full range.

Experience My India is a travel operator, not the site administration. Entry is free; our charge is only for our guiding and services. Access can change.

ॐNearby sacred sites in Ayodhya

Sita Kund is at Kami Ganj, among the Sita shrines and the quiet kunds and mounds.

For the Ram Mandir darshan and its free Sugam booking, see our Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir guide.