By reading verse nos. 9-10 of Parvati Mangal, a book dedicated to the marriage
of Shiva and Parvati written by Goswami Tulsidas, it becomes clear that the time
when Narad arrived at the house of Himgiri was when Parvati or Uma was grown up
and her parents were worried about finding a suitable groom for her.]‚Ò‹⁄UÊ¡ ’«∏ U •ÊŒ⁄U ∑§Ëã„UÊ – ¬Œ ¬πÊÁ⁄U ’⁄U •Ê‚ŸÈ ŒËã„UÊH 6HU
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sailarāja baṛa ādara kīnhā. pada pakhāri bara āsanu dīnhā. 6.
nāri sahita muni pada siru nāvā. carana salila sabu bhavanu sincāvā. 7.
nija saubhāgya bahuta giri baranā. sutā bōli mēlī muni caranā. 8.
When sage Narad arrived, ‘Sailraaj’, the king of the mountains, welcomed him with
great respect and honour. The king duly washed the feet of the guest and gave him a
comfortable mat to sit^1. (6)
Then he, along with his wife, bowed his head at the feet of the sage, and
sprinkled the water that was used to wash the sage’s feet throughout his house to
sanctify it and invoke auspiciousness. [This sprinkling of water everywhere in the
house is a symbolic gesture that implies that every nook and corner of the house is
sanctified by the holiness associated with great sages. It is a symbolic gesture that
means that the sage has walked in the house to purify its environment.] (7)
The king of the mountains praised his extremely good luck that he has had the
privilege of welcoming and serving a great sage^2 of the stature of Narad. Then, as is
the custom, he called his daughter (Uma) and made her prostrate before the feet of the
sage. (8)
[Note—^1 When sage Vishwamitra visited the court of king Dasrath of Ayodhya,
the same process is observed there as well—the king first bowed and welcomed the
sage, gave him a nice seat, summoned his four sons, Lord Ram and his three brothers,
and made them bow before the feet of the great sage. The king praised his good luck
that a sage of the exalted stature of Vishwamitra has come to pay a visit to his
household even without an invitation, something to be exceedingly glad about. Refer:
Ram Charit Manas, Baal Kand, Chaupai line nos. 1-5 that precede Doha no. 207.
The king praised his good luck because exalted saints and sages are met only
when a person is rewarded for some good deeds done by him, and not otherwise:
refer—Ram Charit Manas, (i) Sundar Kand, Chaupai line no. 4 that precedes Doha
no. 7; and (ii) Uttar Kand, the 1st half of Chaupai line no. 6 that precedes Doha no. 45.
When sage Vasistha went to meet Lord Ram, the latter had praised his own good
luck because it is a privilege to have a person of high stature as an honourable
guest—refer: Ram Charit Manas, Ayodhya Kand, Chaupai line nos. 5-8 that precede
Doha no. 9.
(^2) Refer specifically to Ram Charit Manas, Baal Kand, Chaupai line no. 3 that
precedes Doha no. 207 where king Dasrath has praised his luck in exactly the same
way when sage Vishwamitra arrived in his court.]
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dōhā.