The Tulsi Plant By: Seema Burman

SEEMA BURMAN recounts stories associated with the sacred plant ahead of Tulsi Vivaha

Tulsa Maharani Namo Namaha! There is an interesting story about chaturmas, or the four months of monsoon, linked to Vishnu. During these four months, beginning from Devshayani Eka-dashi, 11th lunar day of the Shukla Paksha, or bright fortnight in the month of Ashadha (it was June 30 this year), Vishnu sleeps.

Anyone who assumes a form will naturally sleep and wake up. And the body has three states of consciousness: jagrat or waking, svapna or dreaming, and sushupti or deep sleep. Unlike our sleep, Vishnu sleeps with a trace of deep awareness.
When Vishnu sleeps, all other devas, or gods also go off to sleep. As a result, on earth, all ceremonies come to a halt since Vishnu is not present to bless the occasion. The period is reserved for penance, austerities, fasting and bathing in holy rivers. The chaturmas begins and ends with Vishnu’s sleep. The day Vishnu wakes up is called Devprabodhini Ekadashi. Along with Vishnu, all other gods also wake up and human beings get ready to welcome the festive season.

Divine Properties
When Vishnu wakes up, his marriage to Tulsi is celebrated — November 24 this year — before invitations are extended to him for other weddings.

The word ‘tulsi’ in Sanskrit means ‘incomparable’. The tulsi plant with blackish leaves is referred to as Krishna or Shyama Tulsi and the one with green leaves is called Rama Tulsi.

Both are valued for their physical and spiritual properties and, tulsi is, therefore, perceived as a plant with divine attributes.
Before plucking its leaves, a person chants mantras and takes tulsi’s permission. Food offerings to Vishnu include a few sprigs of the tulsi since Bin Tulsa, Hari ek naa mane, — ‘without Tulsi, Hari does not take even a bite’.  Vishnu prefers a tulsi garland to one made of any other flower.

Another tulsi story is related to the Saligram, a dark stone found in the Gandaki River that represents Vishnu, in Nepal. A story in Kartika Mahatmya says that Vrinda, the wife of demon Jalandhara, cursed Vishnu to become a stone.

Vrinda’s Power
The story goes that the devas once complained to Shiva about Jalandhara’s atrocities. Shiva tried to kill him but the demon had become immensely powerful due his wife Vrinda’s chastity. The wicked demon took the form of Shiva and appeared before Parvati to capture her. But Parvati, who is none other than Maya, the divine power of illusion, the serpent energy of kundalini, disappeared. Maya is a mirage, which Shakti uses to create the world and makes real appear as unreal and unreal as real.

Parvati indicated to Vishnu that Jalandhara had shown the way to get killed. Vishnu sent monkey messengers to tell Vrinda that Jalandhara had been killed.

The demon’s torso and head were presented to her as proof. The grieving Vrinda saw a sadhu — Vishnu in disguise — and requested him to bring her husband back to life. Vishnu created an illusion, made the body whole and himself came before her as Jalandhara. Vrinda embraced him but soon realised that she had been tricked. She lost the power of purity, paving the way for the real Jalandhara to be killed.

A distraught Vrinda’s curse led to Vishnu’s avatar as Rama who suffered separation from his wife. Vrinda’s devotion to her husband impressed Vishnu — hence Vrindavan (named after Vrinda) is full of tulsi plants.

Without tulsi, no daan or charity is considered complete. During a wedding ceremony, tulsi leaves are placed in the bride’s hands to symbolise that the ritual of daan is being included and this pleases the gods.

Once, Narada convinced Satyabama to give away Krishna to the gods as then she would get Krishna as husband in future births. She did so, but when she wanted Krishna back, Narada asked for a gift equal to Krishna’s weight. All the jewels of the palace could not equal Krishna’s weight. Rukmini placed one tulsi leaf and the scale tilted. Such was the power of the humble tulsi that is packed with cherished properties.

Tulsi appeared during the samudra manthan or churning of the ocean. Since Lakshmi, too, emerged from the ocean in the same way, Tulsi is regarded as the younger sister of Lakshmi. Tulsi, too, wanted to marry Vishnu but Lakshmi cursed her to become a plant and tulsi the plant was born. However, Vishnu fulfilled her desire to marry him on account of her intense devotion and purity of thought. Hence, the Tulsi Vivaha.