its preceding Chaupai line no. 8), but in the given circumstances if efforts are mace to
please Shiva sufficiently by doing Tapa, then the Lord can turn the doomed future of
our daughter into a glorious one by accepting to become her husband (refer: Chaupai
line no. 1-4 that precede Doha no. 69).
My dear Maina, Narad has no ill intent whatsoever; he is not against our welfare
and happiness. Please remove your misgivings about him and his integrity. He is not
wicked sage.
Remember: It will be a great privilege for Uma to be the consort of Lord Shiva
who is the greatest of gods and one of the Trinity Gods. Say, who can ever imagine of
this good fortune coming his way; and you worry about it?
Don’t allow your mind to go astray; have faith in Narad’s words because he is a
wise one. Remember: Uma is a dear to me as she is to you. How can I ever disregard
her welfare? But we must not turn our blind eyes to reality, and it is always wise and
prudent to pay heed to wise ones like Narad, because if we try to act smart it is then
we shall have to regret and not by heeding Narad’s advice.
So, cheer up and go to Uma, cheer her up also, and persuade her to do Tapa in
order to attain Shiva. Remember what Narad said: ‘It is only Lord Shiva who can
change her destiny if the Lord is pleased by her Tapa, because the Lord is all-able and
competent to change the course of one’s destiny (refer: Chaupai line no. 5 that
precedes Doha no. 70)’.
Therefore, Narad is not misleading us by hiding anything—neither the future
destiny of Uma nor the character traits of Shiva. He has told us the truth. But while
telling us that the characters of Lord Shiva are negative when viewed from the
perspective of the world and its mortal beings, he has sought to ally our fears by
emphasising they the same set of characters acquire a complete different meaning, a
positive one, when applied to the Lord. He has explained to us why it is so in detail
while advising that the best course of action for Uma would be to please Shiva and
request him to accept her as his consort to overcome the negativities of her fate—
refer: Ram Charit Manas, Baal Kand, from Chaupai line no. 4 that precedes Doha no.
69—to Chaupai line nos. 3 and 5 that precede Doha no. 70.”]‚ÈÁŸ ¬Áà ’øŸ „U⁄UÁ· ◊Ÿ ◊Ê„UË¢ – ªß ̧ ÃÈ⁄Uà ©UÁΔU ÁªÁ⁄U¡Ê ¬Ê„UË¥H 5H
©U◊Á„U Á’‹ÙÁ∑§ ŸÿŸ ÷⁄U ’Ê⁄UË – ‚Á„Uà ‚Ÿ„U ªÙŒ ’ÒΔUÊ⁄UËH 6H
suni pati bacana haraṣi mana māhīṁ. ga'ī turata uṭhi girijā pāhīṁ.
umahi bilōki nayana bharē bārī. sahita sanēha gōda baiṭhārī. 3.
Hearing the encouraging and reassuring words of her husband, she (Maina) felt
delighted at heart (and all her doubts, worries, misgivings and consternations abated).
She immediately went to Girija (Uma). (5)
She called Uma and, with eyes filled in tears (of affection for her)^1 , she
lovingly made the latter sit on her lap. (6)
[Note—^1 Maina had tears in her eyes. When her husband had explained things to her
she had felt reassured. But when she saw the face of her daughter, all her misgivings
resurfaced, and she became highly emotional. She slipped into depression and worries
once again, thinking about the sage’s prophesy regarding her daughter’s doomed fate,
and the fearful prospect of her being forced to do severe Tapa and endure its hardship
if this doomed fate is to be somehow mended in her favour.
Uma has had a pampered upbringing, and now she faced the horror of doing
severe penance and austerity, and suffering hardship to which she was not
accostomed. This very thought send a chill down the spine of Uma’s loving mother,
forcing tears to well-up in her eyes.