fact, he decided to sing about the marriage of Lord Shiva and Parvati because even
Lord Ram had said that if one wants to please him then he must first please Lord
Shiva. Having written ‘Janki Mangal’ which describes the marriage of Lord Ram and
Sita, Tulsidas thought it prudent to apply his narrative and poetic skills to describe the
holy marriage of Lord Shiva and Parvati as an indirect means to please his Lord, Sri
Ram.
In Ram Charit Manas, Sundar Kand, Chaupai line nos. 1-2 that precedes
Doha no. 47, Tulsidas says—“Only till the time Lord Ram, who holds a bow and an
arrow in his hands and has a quiver tied to his waist, is not enshrined in one’s heart do
all the negative qualities and mischief mongers such as Lobha (greed), Moha
(delusions, attachments), Matsarya (jealousy, ill-will, malice), Mada (arrogance,
hauthtiness, false sense of self-importance etc.) are able to live there.”
In other words, if one wishes to start on an auspicious work such as singing
the marriage of Lord Shiva and Parvati it is absolutely essential to clean one’s inner
self, and there is no other method better to do so than to invoke and enshrine Lord
Ram in one’s heart.
The first verse of Janki Mangal is like this present verse of Parvati Mangal
inasmuch as the same set of deities is paid respect to in both the books.(^2) Parvati is called ‘Gauri’ because she was of a fair complexion. Lord Shiva is
called ‘Girish’ because he is the Lord of the mighty mountains, the Himalayas, where
his abode known as Mt. Kailash is situated.]
dqfcr jhfr ufga tkum¡ dfc u dgkom¡A
ladj pfjr lqlfjr eufg vUgokom¡AA3AA
ij vickn&fcckn&fcnwf"kr ckfufgA
ikou djkSa lks xb Hkosl HkokfufgAA4AA
kubita rīti nahiṁ jāna'um̐ kabi na kahāva'um̐.
saṅkara carita susarita manahi anhavāva'um̐. 3.
para apabāda-bibāda-bidūṣita bānihi.
pāvana karauṁ sō ga'i bhavēsa bhavānihi. 4.
3-4. I do not know the different styles, patterns, rules, manners and customs practiced
while writing poetry, nor am I known (famed or renowned) as a poet. I do not harbour
any desire to be praised as a poet. I simply intend to bathe my mind and heart in the
auspicious and pleasant river represented by the divine stories of Lord Shiva. (3)
By dipping in this holy river (i.e. by singing about the marriage of Lord Shiva
with Parvati), I wish to clean and purify my speech which has been tarnished,
corrupted and darkened over time by criticizing others as well as by indulging in
endless and useless debates, arguments and fruitless chatter about worldly matters. (4)
[Note—The same idea is expressed in Ram Charit Manas where Tulsidas says that he
is not writing the divine story of Lord Ram to show that he is any great schlolar or
poet but to purify his speech and give peace to his mind, heart and soul. He says that
since he is not an expert at anything, he is scared stiff to attempt to do such a gigantic
task, but since it is the divine story of Lord Ram he begs all those who read it to
forgive him for the shortcomings, and intead enjoy the nectar that the story contains.
Refer: Ram Charit Manas, Baal Kand, from Chaupai line no. 4 that precedes Doha
no. 8—to Doha no. 9.
Regarding the speech become corrupted and polluted by constant criticism of
others or indulging in futile talk about worldly matters, Tulsidas’ book Vinai Patrika
has many references to it. For instance, verse no. 82, stanza no. 3; verse no. 237,
stanza no. 1; and verse no. 252, stanza no. 2, line no. 2.]