by Tulsidas
To all those who repeat it with devotion,
Shambhu shows his favour.
When the omniscient Shiv heard the Brahman’s prayer
And saw his loving devotion,
A voice from heaven was heard in the temple again,
‘Ask for a boon, best of Brahmans.’
(108A)
‘If you are pleased with me, Lord,
And would show your love to your servant,
Grant me devotion to your feet, Lord
And then another boon.
(108B)
Overwhelmed by your maya, the foolish soul
Wanders forever in error.
So do not be angry with it,
O all-compassionate God.
(108C)
O merciful Shankar,
Be gracious to this creature.
After a little time, Lord,
Let your curse become a kindness.
(108D)
O abode of mercy, now do only that, I pray,
Which will bring him the highest blessings.’
Upon hearing the Brahman’s entreaty for the good of another,
The voice from heaven came again. ‘So be it!’ it replied.
‘Even though he has committed a grievous sin,
And I in my anger have cursed him,
Yet seeing your goodness
I will do him a special favour.
They who are forgiving and helpful and kind to others
O Brahman, are as dear to me as Ram himself.
But my curse, Brahman, cannot be in vain—
He will have to be reborn a thousand times.
But the intolerable anguish of being born and dying
Will not affect him at all,
And in no birth will his knowledge of previous lives be lost.
Listen, Shudra, to my words unfailing—
You have been born in Raghupati’s city,
And then you have devoted yourself to my worship.
By the power of the sacred city and by my grace,
Devotion to Ram will arise in your heart.
Now listen as I tell you the truth, my friend—
A vow to serve the Brahmans is the only way to please Hari.
Now do not ever insult a Brahman,
And regard a holy man as equal to the infinite Lord himself.
Indra’s thunderbolt, my mighty trident,
Death’s rod, and Hari’s dreadful chakra—
He who does not die even when struck by these,
Is burnt to ashes in the fire of hostility to Brahmans.
Hold this true knowledge in your heart,
And nothing will be impossible for you in this world.
One other blessing I now bestow upon you—
You will be able to go wherever you wish unhindered.’
On hearing Shiv’s words, my guru
Rejoiced, and cried, ‘So be it!’
After admonishing me, he returned home,
Holding Shambhu’s feet in his heart.
(109A)
Impelled by my doom, to the Vindhya mountains
I went, and was reborn a snake,
And then, after some time,
I effortlessly gave up that form.
(109B)
Whatever body I assumed, O steed of Hari,
I abandoned again with ease,
Like a man shedding his old clothes
When he puts on new ones.
(109C)
I assumed many forms, Garud,
But my knowledge never left me.
Thus Shiv honoured the Vedic laws,
And I suffered no pain.
(109D)
Whatever body I took on, whether animal, godly, or human,
I worshipped Ram in that form.
But one pain never left me—
The memory of my guru’s kind and tender nature.
Finally I was born in a Brahman’s body,
Difficult even for gods to attain—as the Vedas and Puranas declare.
In that body, whenever I joined other children at play,
I would act out all of Raghunayak’s doings.
When I grew older, my father gave me lessons.
I would listen, understand and reflect on the lessons, but they failed to interest me.
All worldly desires left my heart,
And I became exclusively absorbed in my devotion to Ram’s feet.
Tell me, king of the birds, is there anyone so foolish
As to abandon the cow of plenty and tend a donkey?
Immersed in love, nothing appealed to me,
And my father grew tired of trying to teach me.
When my father and mother passed away,
I left for the forest to worship Ram, defender of the devout.
Wherever I found any great munis living in the forest,
I would visit their ashrams and bow my head to them.
I would ask them to tell me about Ram’s perfections,
And listen with delight to what they told me, Garud.
Thus, I roamed about, listening to recitations of Hari’s virtues,
For by Shambhu’s grace, I could go everywhere, unhindered.
The threefold longing for sons, wealth and fame left me,
And only one great desire remained in my heart—
To behold Ram’s lotus feet,
For then I would consider my life to have been rewarded.
Every muni I asked replied thus to me:
‘God is present in all things.’
But this view of the incorporeal God did not appeal to me,
And I grew ever more attached to the incarnate brahm.
Remembering my guru’s words,
I became devoted to Ram’s feet.
Singing Raghupati’s praises, I wandered about,
My love every moment growing greater.
(110A)
Upon Mount Meru’s peak, under a banyan tree
Sat the muni, Lomas.
On seeing him, I bowed my head,
And very humbly addressed him.
(110B)
When the gracious muni heard
My modest and gentle words, Garud,
He courteously asked me, ‘Brahman,
With what purpose do you come here?’
(110C)
I replied, ‘O ocean of mercy,
You are omniscient and all-wise.
Teach me, blessed one,
How to worship the incarnate brahm.’
(110D)
Then the noble muni reverently related
A few of Raghupati’s perfections, Garud.
But being himself a sage devoted to true knowledge,
And seeing me as the most deserving,
He began to discourse upon the Absolute,
The unbegotten, without duality, without attributes, the sovereign of the heart,
The one, the passionless, the nameless and formless,
The indivisible, the incomparable, accessible only through experience,
Transcending the mind, beyond the senses, unblemished, indestructible,
Immutable, illimitable, the accumulation of bliss.
‘You are It, there is no difference, It and You
Are one as waves and water are—so declare the Vedas.’
The muni explained it to me in many ways,
But this nirgun view did not stay in my heart.
I bowed my head at his feet and once more said,
‘Tell me how to worship the incarnate brahm, noble muni!
Devotion to Ram is water, and my heart a fish—
How can they be separated, O wisest of munis?
Be gracious to me, and teach me how
I may see Raghurai with my own eyes.
When I have gazed upon the king of Avadh to my eyes’ content,
I will listen to your discourse on the unembodied brahm.’
The muni once more related the incomparable story of Hari,
But, demolishing the sagu
n view, he discoursed upon the nirgun.
I rejected the nirgun view of the formless brahm,
And obstinately insisted upon its incarnate form.
For every answer I had another, and as I continued,
The muni began showing signs of anger.
I was so disrespectful, my lord,
That anger arose even in the heart of an enlightened soul.
Even sandalwood, with enough friction,
Will eventually burst into flame.
Again and again the muni angrily
Explained his theory of true knowledge,
While I, sitting there, began pondering
Various questions in my mind.
(111A)
Can anger exist without duality,
Or duality without ignorance?
Can the individual soul, dull, finite,
And subject to maya, ever be equal to God?
(111B)
Can one who helps others be afflicted with adversity,
Or one who holds the philosopher’s stone be poor?
Can an oppressor be free from fear,
Or a libertine escape disgrace?
Can one’s line prosper if one harms a Brahman?
Is objective action possible after attaining self-knowledge?
Can good sense arise from association with the wicked?
Can one who lusts after another’s wife attain salvation?
Can those who have perceived the Supreme Spirit fall again into the cycle of rebirth,
Or those who revile Hari ever find happiness?
Can a kingdom endure without sound statesmanship,
Or sins persist in company with the narration of Hari’s story?
Can unblemished fame be attained without virtuous action,
Or infamy attained without sin?
Is there any gain like devotion to Hari,
Which is sung by the Vedas, the saints and the Puranas?
Is there any loss in the whole world, brother,
Like not worshipping Ram even after receiving a human body?
Is there any wickedness like vilifying another,
O steed of Hari, or any virtue like compassion?
Thus I considered innumerable clever arguments in my mind,
And did not listen to the muni’s discourse with any respect.
Again and again I defended the sagun form of worship,
Till at last the muni angrily declared,
‘Fool, I am giving you the best possible instruction, but you refuse to accept it,
And persist with your countless arguments and counterarguments.
You have no belief in my words of truth,
But like a crow are afraid of everything.
You have a high regard for your own opinions, wretch—
So you shall be changed at once into an outcast bird!’
I took his curse upon my head,
But felt neither afraid nor demeaned.
I turned immediately into a crow,
And then, bowing my head at the muni’s feet,
And invoking Ram, the jewel of the Raghu clan,
I joyfully flew away.”
(112A)
Uma, those devoted to Ram’s feet
And free of desire, pride and anger,
See their Lord present in the whole world—
So with whom can they quarrel?
(112B)
“Listen, O king of the birds, this was not the rishi’s fault.
Ram, the ornament of the Raghu clan, directs the hearts of all,
And it was him, the ocean of mercy, who confused the muni’s understanding
And thus put my love to the test.
When he saw that in thought, word and deed I was his servant,
The Almighty Lord restored the rishi to his senses again.
When the rishi saw my extraordinary fortitude
And my great belief in Ram’s feet,
He was astonished, and, overcome with remorse.
He courteously called me to him.
The muni did all he could to console me,
And then gladly taught me the mantra sacred to Ram.
The sage in his mercy also taught me
How to meditate upon the child Ram.
The beauty and joy of this worship pleased me very much—
I told you this at the beginning.
The muni kept me with him for some time,
And then recited to me the Ramcharitmanas.
After reverently repeating this tale to me,
He spoke these gracious words:
‘By Shambhu’s grace, my son, I found
This secret and beautiful lake of Ram’s acts.
I see that you are one of Ram’s own devotees,
And so I have told you this story in full.
Never repeat this tale, dear son, in the presence of those
Who have no devotion for Ram in their hearts.’
The muni instructed me in many ways,
And I lovingly bowed my head at his feet.
Pleased, the great muni gave me his blessing,
Touching my head with his lotus hands.
‘From now on, unceasing devotion to Ram
Will forever dwell in your heart by my grace.
You will always be Ram’s favourite,
Endowed with every virtue, free from all pride,
Taking any shape you wish, choosing your own time to die,
And a treasure-house of wisdom and dispassion.
(113A)
Any hermitage where you may now live
Meditating upon the divine Lord,
Will be free from the effects of ignorance
For a distance of one yojan all around.
(113B)
Time, fate, virtue, sin, circumstance—
None of these sorrows shall ever torment you.
The many diverse and delightful mysteries of Ram,
Implicit or manifest in legends and the Puranas,
You shall come to know without any effort,
And your love for Ram’s feet will be renewed afresh every day.
Whatever desire you may form in your heart,
Shall become easily attainable by Hari’s grace.’
Hearing the muni’s blessing, O Garud of steadfast mind,
A solemn voice was heard in the sky,
‘May it be as you say, enlightened muni,
For he is my devotee in thought, word and deed.’
Hearing the voice from the sky, I was overcome with joy,
And, lost in love, all my doubts disappeared.
Then, receiving the muni’s permission to depart,
I bowed my head at his feet again and again,
And joyfully came to this hermitage.
By the grace of the Lord, I had received a singular boon.
I have lived here now, O king of the birds,
For seven and twenty cycles of creation.
I unceasingly sing of Raghupati’s perfections,
And the birds in their wisdom reverently listen.
Whenever Raghubir, for the sake of his devotees,
Assumes the body of a man in Avadh’s city,
I go and stay at his capital
And delight myself by looking upon his childish pranks.
Then, holding Ram’s child form in my heart,
I return, king of the birds, to my own ashram.
I have now told you the full story
Of how I took on the form of a crow,
And have answered all your questions, dear son.
The power of faith in Ram is great indeed.
I love this body because it was in this form
That I attained love for Ram’s feet,
And was favoured with the sight of my Lord
So that all my doubts disappeared.
(114A)
I stubbornly defended the doctrine of bhakti,
For which the great rishi cursed me,
But eventually I received a boon difficult
even for saints to obtain.
See the power of devotion!
(114B)
They who knowingly abandon such bhakti
And strive only for knowledge are fools
Who disregard the wish-fulfilling cow tied up at home,
And wander instead in search of the milkweed for milk.
Listen, king of the birds—those who abandon the worship of Hari
And want happiness through other means
Are fools who stupidly seek to cross
The great ocean of existence without a boat.”
Garud rejoiced to hear Bhushundi’s words, Bhavani,
And said in gentle tones,
“By your grace, sire, in my heart remain
No doubt, sorrow, delusion, nor error.
Through your kindness, I have heard
The sanctifying tale of Ram’s perfections and have attained peace.
But I have one more question, sire—
In your infinite mercy, please explain it to me.
The saints, the munis, the Vedas and the Puranas all say
There is nothing as difficult to attain as knowledge.
That is what that muni also said to you, sire,
But you did not respect knowledge as you did devotion.
What is the difference between knowledge and bhakti?
Explain it to me fully, O abode of compassion.”
Pleased to hear Uragari’s words
The wise crow courteously replied,
“There is no difference between bhakti and knowledge,
For both put an end to the distress born of this existence.
Great sages, though, tell of a difference between the two—
Listen to it carefully, O noblest of birds.
Wisdom, dispassion, contemplation, knowledge—
These are all masculine, Garud.
The power of the male is mighty in every way,
While the female is weak and inherently inferior.
Only a man dispassionate and resolute of mind
Can give up women,
Not the libertine devoted to worldly pleasure
Who has no regard for Raghubir’s feet.
(115A)
But even such an enlightened muni
Falls under the spell of a doe-eyed woman
At the sight of her moon-bright face.
It is Vishnu’s own delusive power, Garud, that becomes manifest as woman.
(115B)
I take no sides here, but merely state