In the Ramayana, Maricha is the demon who disguises himself as the golden deer that distracts Rama from Sita.
Maricha is associated with the forest episode that leads to Sita’s abduction. Ravana asks him to take the form of a beautiful golden deer and lure Rama away from the hermitage. Sita sees the extraordinary animal and asks Rama to capture it or bring back its skin.
Rama pursues the deer and eventually strikes it. In many tellings, the dying Maricha calls out in Rama’s voice, prompting Lakshmana to leave Sita temporarily. Ravana then approaches the unprotected hermitage and abducts Sita.
Maricha is sometimes confused with the deer itself, but Maricha is the demon’s name; the golden appearance is his magical disguise. The episode is one of the Ramayana’s best-known turning points.