Rambha (apsara)

Rambha
Rambha tries to seduce Shukra

Rambha in Hindu mythology is the Queen of the Apsarases, the magical and beautiful female beings in Devaloka.

She is unrivalled in her accomplishments in the arts of dancing, music and beauty. She is often asked by the king of the Devas, Indra to break the tapasya of sages so that the purity of their penance is tested against temptation, and also that the order of the three worlds remains undisturbed by any one man's mystical powers. When she tries to disturb the penance of Rishi Vishwamitra (who is doing it to become a Brahmarishi), she is cursed by him to become a rock for 10,000 years till a Brahmin delivers her from the curse.

In the epic Ramayana, Rambha is violated by Ravana, king of Lanka, who is thereby cursed by Brahma that if he violates another woman again, his head will burst. This curse protects the chastity of Sita, the wife of Rama when she is kidnapped by Ravana.

Rambha is the wife of Nalakuvara, the son of Kubera. By some accounts it is he who cursed Ravana.