Bhakthirathnakara- 3.Tulsidas- birth and initiation

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Bhakthirathankara-3.Tulasidas

 

The reason I took the story of

Tulsidas after that of Kabir is that while Kabir extolled the nama, Tulsi wrote

about the nami. Both had a similarity in as much as both of them adopted a simple

language understood by all. Kabir did not have formal education but Tulsi was

well versed in Sanskrit language and sastras. Yet he chose to write his

ramacharithamanas in simple colloquial language. This was a great boon to the

world because in the last century the rulers of petty kingdoms were quarreling

amongst themselves and the moguls easily invaded the country and started

converting the people to the faith of Islam. Ramacharitha manas in simple

vernacular hindi became very popular among common people and saved them from

embracing Islam, though at that time Akbar was ruling the country and he was

more liberal in his outlook.

 

Tulsi was supposed to have been

born with all his teeth and passed out of his childhood very quickly. He was born in the village

of Rajapur near Allahabad to Athmaram Shukla Dhube and Hulsi. The people of the

village despised the child because he was born with full set of teeth and

wanted to destroy him. His mother gave him to her midwife who took him to another village and

brought him up. The child was saying ramanama always and the people called him

Rambola. Since his foster mother became prosperous after bringing him he was

brought up with much love and the people of the village also acclaimed him. The

midwife who brought him up died and he became the child of the whole village

and the people looked after him. He used to spend all his time in the temple of Hanuman.

 

In the nearby village named Raamagiri

there was a devotee named Narhari Anandh

who used to do Ramayana parayana all day long. Once a holy man came to see him

from Chitrakoota. Narahari told him that he was not able to concentrate on the

Ramayana parayana for sometime and the holyman told him to go to the next

village and bring the orphan boy from the Hanuman temple there and give him the Ramayana. Narahari went

there and saw Rambola and brought him to Ramagiri and performed upanayana for

him. Rambola used to recite the gaythri manthra 10000 times a day and finished

chanting the manthra one crore times in three years. He shone with a great

luminance and Narahari initiated him with ramamanthra and did Ramayana navaaha paarayana with him

in front. Rambola was motionless for nine days and when the pattrabhisheka was

done on the ninth day, Narahari sprinkled the abhisheka theertha on him and he

immediately started reciting the Ramayana. There was a tulsi plant in front of

the house and Rambola went round it reciting Ramayana and the plant grew so large

that Rambola started to reside in its shadow. From that time he was called

Tusidas by the people who marveled at him,