aba jauṁ tumhahi sutā para nēhū. tau asa jā'i sikhāvanu dēhū. 1.
karai sō tapu jēhiṁ milahiṁ mahēsū. āna upāyam̐ na miṭihi kalēsū. 2.
nārada bacana sagarbha sahētū. sundara saba guna nidhi bṛṣakētū. 3.
asa bicāri tumha tajahu asaṅkā. sabahi bhām̐ti saṅkaru akalaṅkā. 4.
[Giriraaj, the king of mountains and the father of Uma, told his wife, Maina—] ‘Now,
taking into consideration what I have said above, if you have sincere affection for our
daughter and are concerned about her future welfare, then you should go and give her
a wise advice (1)---
---so that she does Tapa (penance and austerity) in order to attain Lord Shiva^1.
Otherwise, there is no other way to eliminate the grief and worries (that have
overwhelmed both of us)^2. (2)
Remember: The words of Narad are rich in subtle meaning and very
reasonable. [Don’t think that he is an ordinary clairvoyant who has cast his magical
spell on me to mislead me to fall into some kind of trap. What he has said is not
without reason, and it has some secret meaning of which, may be, we are not aware.
He is a “Trikaalagy and Sarvagya” sage; he knows about the past life of Uma as well
as what is in store for her future. Narad is a great devotee of Lord Vishnu, and when
he says that our daughter must seek the hand of Shiva in marriage, he must surely
have some sound reason behind it. He is not the type of sage who will tell a lie to suit
his vested interest.]
[He has already told us that—] Lord Brishketu (i.e. Lord Shiva whose flag has
the emblem of a Bull which stands for Dharma, or the virtues of righteousness,
auspiciousness, probity, propriety and nobility) is indeed glorious and a treasury of
beautiful virtues in all imaginable ways^3. (3)
Think this over and recognise the truth of what I am saying. So, you must
dispel all your doubts, misgivings and consternations. Shiva is absolutely free from all
perceived taints and negativities that can be ever imagined. [Hence, you need not
unnecessarily worry.]^4 ’ (4)
[Note—^1 Refer: Ram Charit Manas, Baal Kand, Chaupai line no. 5 that precedes Doha
no. 70.
(^2) Refer: Ram Charit Manas, Baal Kand, Doha no. 70.
(^3) Refer: Ram Charit Manas, Baal Kand, Chaupai line nos. 3-5, and 7-8 that
precede Doha no. 70.
(^4) Here the king has answered his wife’s concerns expressed in Chaupai line no. 6
that precedes Doha no. 71 where she says that he must weigh all the pros and cons
before deciding on the groom for their daughter Uma so that later on they are not
tormented by grief and remorse at having made a wrong choice due to reliance on the
word of a sage who has already said so many negative things about the future of their
beloved daughter in order to fill their minds with fear and doubt.
Uma’s father, king Giriraaj, told her mother Maina: “Remember: Narad has been
truthful to us by telling us the reality about our daughter’s future. That is a good thing
to do. Say, is it not wise to know the truth so that a person can make amends and find
a wise way out while still there is time, instead of being in the dark and landing in an
unforeseen trouble at a later date when it is already too late?
His advising us about the possibility of choosing Lord Shiva as a groom for Uma
was out of his sincere desire to help us out of the quagmire we have found ourselves
in. Since no one can change a person’s destiny (refer: Doha no. 68), what the wise,
compassionate and noble-hearted sage Narad did was to give us a ray of hope amidst
the gloom of darkness, saying in effect that everything is not lost and doomed, and
that there is still hope. Though it is not possible to change the destiny of Uma that she
will get a husband with the negative traits listed by the sage (refer: Doha no. 67 and