From time immemorial, Devi worship has been practised and the scriptures, the Puranas and the many hymns show that this worship springs from the experience of the inner truth of the oneness of Truth and Beauty that culminates in the form of Devi.
In the Devi Bhagavata, Devi addresses Himavan, her father thus: “O king of mountains! This whole universe, moving and unmoving, is created by my Maya Sakti. This Maya is conceived in me, and is not, in reality, different or separate from me. So I am the only Chit , Intelligence. There is no other intelligence than me though, when viewed practically, it appears as Maya.” The Devi further tells Himavan: “Whenever dharma is on the wane, and adharma is on the rise, I assume different forms and disguises.”
This is a direct parallel to the famous sloka in the Bhagavad Gita where Krishna speaks of His appearance in this world time and again to establish dharma when it begins to wane, pointed out Sri B. Sundarkumar in a discourse. So Devi’s incarnations and disguises are for specific purposes. Following this, there is a school of thought that accepts that in Treta Yuga, Devi takes the form of Rama and Siva the form of Sita; and it is also held that Nandi takes the form of Hanuman. The idea is developed further thus: that Ravana, desirous of worshipping Siva, abducts Sita and keeps her in Lanka. Interpreters point to instances of internal evidence in Valmiki Ramayana to support this view.
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In the Ayodhya Kanda, it is shown that Rama plays His role to such perfection that He refuses to take Sita with Him to the forest. He appears to have forgotten the purpose of His avatar. Then Sita gets her original consciousness and, forgetting that she is enacting a drama, she states that Rama is only a woman in man’s attire and that her father had failed to see this truth.