Parvati was determined to attain Shiva, and all sorts of persuasion had no effect upon
her. This was good for her, because any great objective is never reached, any great
success is not possible if one is not fully committed to it and does not have a firm
resolve to reach his target against all odds. If one is determined and resolute, success
is within his or her grasp. This will be proved now when Parvati rejected all offers to
go back home, and instead decided to resume doing more severe form of direct Tapa
(penance, austerity) to attain Shiva. She would be amply rewarded later on because
the Lord finally marries her to fulfill her wish. Had she lacked in her determination
and resolution, she would have been left in a void of neglect and ridicule in this
world. She would not have achieved in becoming the Mother Goddess that she finally
did by marrying Shiva.]
Then she (Parvati) politely comforted everyone, thanking them for being
worried about her future and well-being, and assuring them that everything will be
alright.
She sought and got permission from her parents to do severe Tapa to reach her
goal of attaining Shiva. Tulsidas says that her Tapa was so intense and severe^1 that it
is not possible for him to narrate it. [Parvati’s self confidence and resolution are
exemplary, especially when she happened to be a lady for whom doing severe form of
Tapa is not a cake-walk.] (Chanda no. 4)
[Note—^1 The severity of Parvati’s Tapa is described below in verse nos. 34-40.
It has also been described in Ram Charit Manas, Baal Kand, Doha no. 74 along
with Chaupai line nos. 1-8 that precede it. It says—“Parvati enshrined Lord Shiva in
her heart as the Lord of her life and existence (‘Pran-Pati’), and went to a dense forest
to do Tapa. Her body was delicate and not accustomed to hardships that Tapa
requires, but she remembered (invoked) the holy feet of her Pran-Pati and discarded
all comforts at the altar of Tapa. Newer and progressively more robust form of love
and affection for the holy feet of her beloved Lord (Shiva) began to develop and grow
in her heart with the passage of every day. She was so deeply engrossed in doing
Tapa that she became unconcerned about her body and its comfort or well-being. For
one thousand years she ate only roots and fruits, and for the next hundred years she
survived on raw leafy plants. For some days she survived merely on water and air,
and later on began to fast by abandoning everything. For three thousand years she ate
only those leaves of the Bel tree (wood apple tree) that had dried up and fell to the
ground on their own. At later stages of her Tapa she did not eat even these dried-up
leaves, and it is because of this stern vow that she got to be honoured with the title of
‘Aparna’—one who abandoned even the leaves. When Uma’s body became
extremely emaciated and decayed due to the severity of her Tapa, a voice from the
sky said—Oh Parvati (the daughter of the mountains). Your Tapa is successful, and
now you should stop doing it further. Your wishes will be fulfilled now for you will
attain access to Lord Shiva.”]
fQjsm ekrq firq ifjtu yf[k fxfjtk iuA
tsfga vuqjkxq ykxq fprq lksb fgrq vkiuAA33AA
rtsm Hkksx ftfe jksx yksx vfg xu tuqA
eqfu eulgq rs vxe rifga yk;ks euqAA34AA
phirē'u mātu pitu parijana lakhi girijā pana.
jēhiṁ anurāgu lāgu citu sō'i hitu āpana. 33.
tajē'u bhōga jimi rōga lōga ahi gana janu.
muni manasahu tē agama tapahiṁ lāyō manu. 34.