eternal consort,

 Jai Sri Ram,

At the direction of the sages, Sambhu and Bhavani paid honors to Lord Ganapati, 

Let No one is puzzled to hear this, for one should bear in mind that gods existed from time without beginning,

The great sages had the nuptial ceremony performed in all details as laid down in the Vedas,

Taking scared Kusha grass in his hand and holding the bride by her hand, the mountain king Himalaya made her over to Bhava that Shiva knowing her to be his eternal consort,

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Like a Bee

 Jai Sri Ram, 

An alter was prepared in accordance with the Vedic rituals and women chanted charming festal strains, a divinely beautiful throne with the images of a pair of lions for its arms were placed on the altar, being a handwork of the creator himself, it beggared description,

Bowing his head to the Brahmans and calling to his mind his master, the lord of Raghus, Shiv took his seat on the throne, the great sages then sent for Uma, who was brought in by her girl companions richly adorned,

All the gods were enraptured at her beauty, what poet in the world could describe such loveliness, recognizing in her the mother of the universe and spouse of Shiva, the divinities mentally bowed to her, the perfection of beauty that Bhavani was could not be adequately praised even with millions of tongues, 

The superb beauty of the mother of the universe could not be described even with millions of tongues, when the Vedas, Sesa, and Sarada shrink abashed, of what account is dull-witted Tulsidasa,  Mother Bhavani, the mind of beauty, walked to the middle of the pavilion, where shiva was, out of shyness She couldn't gaze on  her Lord's lotus feet, although her heart was fixed thereon like a bee,

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Festive songs began to be sung

 Jai Sri Ram,

Festive songs began to be sung in the city, vases of gold of every pattern were displayed by all, and dishes of various kinds were prepared in accordance with the process given in astrological works, is it ever possible to describe the varieties of dishes prepared in the house where lived mother Bhavani, 

Himachal respectfully summoned all the members of the bridegroom's party, including Vishnu, Brahma, and other gods of all classes, the dinner guests sat in many rows, and expert cooks began to serve, finding the gods dining, batches of women began to banter and rail at them in pleasant strains, 

Charming women railed in sweet strains and poured innuendos, the gods felt much amused to hear them and dinner for an unusually long time, the joy that swelled at the dinner cannot mouths at the end of the dinner, they were given betel leaves, and then returned to their respective lodgings, 

The seven sages called once more and read out to Himavan the note recording the time fixed for the wedding and perceiving that the hour had arrived, the latter sent for the gods, Himachal politely sent for all the gods and assigned an appropriate seat to each of them,

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Narada's explanation

 Jai Sri Ram,

She creates, maintains, and then dissolved the universe and assumes the semblance of a material form of her own will, Fiest she was born in the house of Daksha, Sati was her name and charming was her form, even in that incarnation Sati was married to Sankara, the story is well known throughout the world,

One day, while she was returning home with Shiva, she beheld Sri Rama, who is sun as it were to the lotus-like race of Raghu, bewildered by his sight, she did not listen to Shiva's advice and was beguiled into assuming the disguise of Sita, Sankara repudiated her because she had offended him by assuming the disguised of Sita,

Separated from Hara, she then visited the sacrifice undertaken by her father and burnt herself in the fire of Yoga there, now reborn in your house, she has undergone terrible penance for the sake of her Lord, and knowing this, give up all doubt, Girija-your daughter is ever beloved of Sankara, 

When they heard  Narada's explanation, the sadness of all was dispersed, in a trice, the news spread from house to house through the city, then Mena and her consort Himavan rejoiced and bowed at Parvati's feet, again and again, all the citizens including men, women and children, young men as well as elderly people, were immensely delighted, 

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inseparable half

 Jai Sri Ram,

What harm have I done to Narada that he should have ruined my happy home and tendered such advice to Uma as made her undergo penance for securing a crazy husband, in good sooth the sage is passionless and without affection, he has no wealth, no dwelling and no wife and is indifferent to all, that is why he destroys other's homes, that is why he destroys other's homes, 

He has neither shame nor fear, what does a barren woman know of the pain of childbirth, seeing her mother distressed, Bhavani, addressed the following soft yet prudent words to her mother, whatever is ordained by providence cannot be altered, realizing this be not worried, Mother, if I am destined to have a crazy husband why should anyone blame for it, 

Can you alter the decree of providence, therefore, take no reproach on you unnecessarily, Take no approach on you, cease lamenting, this is no occasion for it, the amount of joy and sorrow that has fallen to my lot I must reap wherever I go, hearing the soft and polite words of Uma all the ladies become sad, they blamed the creator in many ways and tears flowed from their eyes, 

On hearing the news that very moment Himachal came to his house along with Narada and the seven seers, then Narada reassured them all, narrating to them the past history of Uma, he said, Mena, hear my true words, your daughter is more else than Bhavani, the eternal consort of Shiva, mother of the universe, she is the unborn and imperishable divine energy, which has no beginning, she is Shambhu's inseparable half,

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wailed, wept and exclaimed as

 Jai Sri Ram,

The party which had gone ahead to receive the bridegroom's procession returned with the procession and assigned beautiful lodgings to all the guests, Mena that Parvati's mother kindled auspicious lights for waving round the bridegroom and the women accompanying her sang melodious songs of rejoicing, a salver of gold adorned Mena's fair hands and she proceeded to welcome Lord Hara with great delight,

The women were seized with excessive fear when they saw Rudra in frightful accouterments, they fled in great panic and entered the house, while the great lord shiva repaired to the lodgings of the bridegroom's party, Mena was sorely and distressed at heart and sent for Parvati, with great affection she seated her in her lap and tears rushed to her eyes, which resembled a pair of blue lotuses,

To think that the creator, who has made you so beautiful, should have been stupid enough to give you such a madman for a bridegroom, how strange the creator, who has made you so lovely, should have given you crazy fellow for the bridegroom, a fruit which should have adorned the wish yielding tree is helplessly appeared on a thorny Babula. 

Taking you in my arms I would sooner fall from a mountaintop, cast myself into the flames, or drown myself in the sea, let my home be ruined and let me earn a bad reputation throughout the world but in no case would I marry you this maniac so long as there is life in me, all the ladies assembled there were distressed of Himacala said, recalling the affection of her daughter she wailed, wept and exclaimed as_

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there is no cause for fear,

 Jai Sri Ram, When it was heard that the bridegroom's procession was close at hand, there was a commotion in the city, which added to its charm, adoring themselves and decorating their vehicles of various kinds, a party proceeded in advance to receive the procession with due honor, they were gladdened at heart to see the gatherings of immortals, and they were all happier to behold Sri Hari, 

But when they started looking at Shiva's retinue, every animal they rode started back, and fleed in panic, the adult recovered themselves and remained where they were, while every child that came ran for its life, on their reaching home when their parents questions them, they spoke as follows, their limb still shaking with fear, what shall we say, the sight was such as could not be described,

We wonder whether it was a bridegroom's procession or the army of death, the  bridegroom is a maniac, riding on a bull, serpents, skulls, and ashes are his ornaments, and his body is smeared with ashes and adorned with serpents and skulls, he is naked, has matted hair on his head and is dreadful to look at, he is accompanied by ghosts and evil spirits, goblins and fairies, and demons with frightful continence, 

He who survives on seeing the bridegroom's possession is a man of great luck indeed and alone will witness the wedding of Uma, there were the words uttered by the children from house to house, the parents smiled, for they knew that the children, were talking of Shiva's retinue. they reassured the children in many ways and said, Be Not Afraid, there is no cause for fear,

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extremely fantastic

 Jai Sri Ram,

The Ghosts danced and sang, they were all extremely fantastic, they looked most absurd and spoke words in a peculiar style, the procession was now quite worthy of the bridegroom, and the processionists indulged in gaieties of various kinds as they went along,  on the other side Himachal erected a most wonderful pavilion which beggared description, 

As many mountains as existed in the world, small or big, more than man can count, and the whole host of woods, seas, rivers, and ponds were invited by Himachal, capable of taking any form they linked, they assumed handsome figure and repaired to the houses of Himalaya along with their consorts, they all sang festive songs out of affection,

The mountain king had gladly caused a number of houses tastefully decorated, and all the guests were lodged therein, each occupying  a house befitting one's status, the splendor of the city was so captivating that after a glance at it the creative skill of Brahma looked very small, a glance at the beautiful city made the creative art of Brahma himself pale into insignificance, grooves and gardens, wells and ponds and rivers, all looked charming beyond words, 

Every house was decorated with a number of triumphal arches, flags, and bunting, men, and women of the city were so lovely and ingenious that they enraptured the heart of sages, The city in which the mother of the universe had bodied herself forth baffled all description, prosperity and success, wealth and happiness were always on the increase there and presented a new aspect,

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Sri Hari's humor never failed,

 Jai Sri Ram,

They relate the whole episode to him, and he was much grieved to hear how Shiva had burnt love, the sages then told him of the boon granted to Rati, and Himvan was much relieved to learn this, recalling to his mind the glory of Sambhu Himachal respectfully summoned great sages, he had an auspicious date, asterism and hour ascertained speedily got the exact time of wedding fixed and noted down according to the Vedic precepts Himachal handed over the note recording the exact time of wedding to the seven seers, and clasped their feet made entities to them, calling Brahma they delivered the note to him, as he went through his heart overflowed with joy, Brahma read the note aloud to all, the sages, as well as the whole concourse of gods, was delighted to hear it, flowers were showered from the air, music flowed from, various instruments and auspicious jars were placed in all direction,

All the gods began to adorn their vehicles and aerial cars of various kinds, happy and auspicious omens were visible and celestial damsels sang for joy, The attendants of Sambhu began to adorn their lord, his matted locks were formed into a crown and decked with a crest of serpents, he had serpents for his earrings and bracelets, smeared his person with ashes and wrapped a lion's skin around his loins, he bore the crescent on his charming brow and the river Ganga on the crown of his head  and had three eyes and the serpent  for the scared thread, his throat was black with poison swallowed by him at the beginning of creation and had the wrath of human skull about his neck, thus clad in a ghastly attire, he was nonetheless an embodiment blessing and merciful to the core, 

A trident and a damaru adorned his hands, Shiva ride on a bull while musical instruments played, and female divinities smiled to see him, the world has no bride worthy of the bridegroom, they said to one another, Vishnu, Brahma, and hosts of other gods joined the bridegroom's procession and rode on their respective vehicle, the gathering of the immortals was incomparable in every respect, the procession was hardly worthy of the bridegroom, God Vishnu then called all the guardians of the different quarters and smilingly said, every one of you should march separately, each with his own retinue, the procession, brothers, is no way worthy of the bridegroom, you will make yourself a butt of ridicule in a strange city, Hearing the words of Vishnu, the gods smiled and parted, each with his own group, the great Lord Shiva laughed in his sleeves and noticed that Sri Hari's humor never failed,

As soon as he heard these most pleasing remarks of his beloved friend, he sent Bhringhi to call all his attendants and they all came when they thread Shiva's command and bowed their heads at the lotus feet of their Lord, Shiva laughed to see his host in their mostly attire riding every kind of vehicle, some were headless, while others were hydra-headed monsters, some were without hands and feet, while others had numerous hands and feet, some had numerous eyes while others had no eyes at all, some were stout and well built, while others had very slim bodies, some had lean and thin bodies, while others were very stot, some were tidy, while others had habits, the had frightful ornaments, carried skulls in their hands and were smeared with fresh blood, they bore heads of donkeys, dogs, swine and jackals and the varieties of their cloths could not be countered, the troops of the spirits goblins and fairies of various kinds beggared description,

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SHIVA GLADLY SAID_AMEN

 Jai Sri Ram,

Henceforth, O Rati, your husband be called by the name of Ananga, bodiless, he shall dominate all even without a body, now hear how you will meet him again when Sri Krishna will descend in the line of Yadu to relieve the earth of its heavy burden, your lord will be born again as his son, this prediction of mine can never be untrue, hearing the words of Sankara Rati went away, I now proceed to relate the subsequent part of the story, when Brahma and other gods received all the tidings, they repaired to Vaikuntha, thence all the gods, including Vishnu and Virinchi, went where the all-merciful Shiva was, They severally extolled and won the pleasure of the Lord whose crest is adorned by a crescent, 

Shiva, who is an ocean of compassion and has a bull emblazed on his standard said, tell me, immortals, what brought you here, to this Brahma replied, Lord, you are the controller of all, even then, my master, my devotion to you urges me to make the following submission, the heart of all the immortals is seized with a dominating impulse, they long to witness your wedding with their eyes, my Lord, O humbler of the pride of the love,, devise some means whereby we may be enabled to feast our eyes on this glad event, having burnt the god of love, you have done well in granting a boon to Rati, O ocean of compassion, having meted out punishment, good masters shower their grace as a matter of course, such is a natural habit,

Parvati has practiced penance the magnitude of which cannot be estimated, kindly accept her now, hearing the entities of Brahma and remembering the words of Lord Rama, SHIVA GLADLY SAID_AMEN, the gods thereupon sounded their kettledrums and rating down the flowers they exclaimed, Victory, Victory to the lord of celestials, considering it to be an opportune moment, the seven seers arrived on the scene, Brahma immediately sent them to the abode of Himalaya, they approached Bhavani in the first instance and addressed the following sweet yet deceptive words to her, relying on the advice of Narada you would not heed our remonstrances then, you vow has failed now, for Shiva has burnt the god of love,

Hearing this Bhavani smiled and said, O great illumined sages, you have spoken aright, according to your belief it is only now that Sambhu has burnt the god of love and that till now he was smitten with love, to my mind, however, Shiva is eternally in rapport with the infinite, unbegotten, irreproachable, passionless and without enjoyment, knowing him as such, if I have served him lovingly in thought, word, and deed, then hear, O great sages, the gracious Lord will accomplish my vow,, your statement that Hara has burnt the god of love betrays woeful; lack of thought in you, Fire, my friend, possesses the inherent property that frost can never approach it, in case it must invariably perish, similarly is the case with the god of love and the great Lord Shiva, hearing the words of Bhavani and perceiving her devotion and faith, the sages were gladdened at heart, bowing their head to her, they went to Himalaya,

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THIRD EYE,

 Jai Sri Ram,

The wonder lasted for an hour or so till the god of love reached Shambhu, Cupid trembled at the sight of Shiva, and the whole world returned to itself, all living beings regained their peace of mind at once, even as the intoxicated felt relieved when their spell of drunkenness is over, the god of love was struck with terror at the sight of Bhagwan Rudra, who is so difficult to conquer and so hard to comprehend,

He felt shy in retreating and was incapable of doing anything, ultimately he resolved upon death and devised a plan, He forthwith manifested the lovely spring, the king of all seasons, rows of young trees laden with flowers assumed a most delightful aspect, everywhere nature overflowed with love as it were, the sight aroused passion even in dead souls, passion was aroused even in dead souls, and the beauty of the forest beggared description,, a Cool, gentle and fragrant breeze fanned the fire of passion as a faithful companion, rows of lotuses blossomed in lakes and swarms of charming bees hummed on them, swans, cuckoos, and parrots uttered their notes while celestials damsels sang and danced,

The gods of love with his army of followers exhausted all his numberless stratagems, Shiva's unbroken trance, however, could not be disturbed, and this made cupid angry, Seeing a beautiful bough of a mango tree, the god of love climbed up to it in a mood of frustration, he joined his five arrows of flowers, and casting an angry look drew the string home to his very ears, he discarded the five sharp arrows, which smote the breast of Shiva, the trance was now  broken and Shambhu awoke, the lord's mind was much agitated opening his eyes he looked all around when saw cupid hiding behind mango leaves, he flew into a rage, which made all the three spheres tremble, Shiva then uncovered his THIRD EYE, 

The moment he looked at the god of love the latter was reduced to ashes, a loud wail went up through the universe, the gids were alarmed, while the demons were gratified, the thought of the loss of the sense delights made the voluptuary sad, while the striving Yogis were relieved of thorn as it were, The Yogis were freed from torment, while Rati, wife of the god of love fainted as soon as she heard of the fate of her lord, weeping and wailing and mourning in various ways she approached Sankara, and making loving entities in divergent forms she stood before the lord with clasped hands, seeing the helpless woman, the benevolent Lord Shiva, who is easy to placate, prophesied as follows,

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wonderful game of love

 Jai Sri Ram,

The minds of all were seized with lust, the boughs of trees bent low at the sight of creepers, rivers in spate rushed to meet the ocean, lakes, and ponds united in love with one another, where such was reported to be the case with the inanimate creation, who can relate the doing of sentient beings, beasts that walk on land and birds traveling the air, and water lost all sense of time and become victims of lust, the whole world was blinded with passion and agitated,

The Cakravaka birds that rudy geese, regarded neither day nor night, gods demons, human beings, Kinnaras, a class from demigods, serpents, evil spirits, fiends, ghosts, and vampires,   I have refrained from dwellings on the condition of these, knowing them to be eternal slaves of passion, even Siddhas that spiritual adepts great sages who had no attraction to the world and Yogis that mystics give up their Yoga under the influence of lust,

Even great Yogis were completely possessed by lust to say nothing of low-minded people, those who till lately looked upon the animate and inanimate creation as full of Brahma now saw it s full of the fair sex, women perceived the whole world of men, while the later beheld it as full of women, for nearly an hour this wonderful game of love lasted in the universe,

Nobody could remain self-possessed, the hearts of all were stolen by the god of love, they alone could hold their own against him, to whom the Lord of Raghus race extended his protection,

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benevolence is the highest virtue,

 Jai Sri Ram,

Hearing what I say, act accordingly,, God will help you and the plan will succeed, Sati,, who left her body at the sacrifice performed by Daksha, has been born again in the house of Himalaya, She has undergone penance for winning the hand of Sambhu, while Shiva has renounced everything and sits absorbed in contemplation, although it is most unseemly, yet hear one proposal of mine, approaching cupid, send him to shiva and let him disturb the serenity of Sankara's mind them we shall go and bow our head at shiva\s feet and prevail on him to merry even against his will,

In this way alone may the interest of gods be served, the idea is excellent, everyone said, the gods then prayed with great devotion, and the god of love, armed with live arrows and having  a fish emblazoned on his standard, appeared on the scene, the gods told him all their distress, hearing their tale, the god of love pondered and spoke thus with a smile, I expect no good result myself from hostility to Sambhu, however, I Shall do your work, for the Vedas say benevolence is the highest virtue,  

The saints ever praise him who lay down his life in the service of others, so saying, the god of love bowed to him, he then exhibited his power and brought the whole world under his sway, when the god of love betrayed his range, all barriers imposed by the Vedas were swept away in a moment, The whole army of Viveka that discriminating knowledge, continence, religious vows self-restraint of many kinds, fortitude, piety, spiritual wisdom and the knowledge of qualified Brahma both with form and without, morality and muttering of prayers, Yoga that contemplative union with God dispassion and so one flew in panic, 

Viveka took to flight with his associates his great warriors turned their back on the field of battle, and they all went and hide in the mountain caves in the form of sacred books at that time, there was a commotion in the world and everybody said, my goodness, what is going to happen, what power will save us, who is that superhuman bring with two heads to conquer whom the lord of Rati that love, has lifted his bow and arrows in rage, whatever creature existed in the world, whether animate or inanimate and bearing masculine or feminine appellations transgressed their bounds and were completely possessed by lust,

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sprung from loins

 Jai Sri Ram,

Had you met me earlier, O great sages, I would have listened to your advice with reverence, but now that I have staked my life for Sambhu, who will weigh his merits and demerits if you are specially bent upon uniting a pair and cannot help negotiating a match, there is no dearth of suitors and maidens, and those who take delight in such games know no weariness,

As for myself I must wed Sambhu or remain a virgin, no matter if I have to continue the struggle for ten million lives, I will not disregard Narada's  admonition even if Sambhu himself tells me a hundred times to do so, I fall at your feet, continued Parvati, the mother of Universe, please return to your home, it is already late, seeing Parvati's devotion the enlighten sages exclaimed, glory, all glory to you, O Bhavani, mother of the Universe,

You are Maya while Shiva is God himself, You are the parents of the whole universe, bowing their heads at the feet of Parvati, they departed, and a thrill run through their frame, again and again, the sages went and dispatched Himalaya to Girija and he with many entities brought her home, the seven seers then called on Shiva and told him the whole history of Uma, Shiva was enraptured to her of her love, and the Saptarisis gladly went home, the all-wise Sambhu then concentrated his mind and began to meditate on the lord of Raghus, 

A demon Taraka by name flourished in those days, his strength of arms, glory, and majesty were great indeed, he conquered all the spheres as well as the guardians of those spheres, all the gods were robbed of their happiness and prosperity, knowing neither age nor death, he was invincible, the gods fought many a battle with him and lost them, they then went to Brahma and told him their grievances, the creator found all gods miserable, Brahma reassured them all saying, the demon shall die only when there's a son sprung from loins of Sambhu, for he alone can subdue the demon in battle,

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Even now accept our advice

 Jai Sri Ram,

Even now accept our advice, we have thought of an excellent match for you, exceptionally good looking pious, agreeable, and amiable, whose glory and exploits are sung by Vedas, he is free from blemish, is a mine of all virtues, and the lord of Laxmi and has his abode in Vaikuntha, such is the suitor we shall unite with you, 

Hearing this Bhavani laughed and said, you have rightly observed that body of mine is begotten of a rock, I would sooner die than give up my tenacity, gold is another product of rock, which does not abandon its character even on being consigned to fire, 

I may not ignore Narada's advice, whether my house is full or desolate. i fear not, he who has no faith in the words of his preceptor cannot easily attain either happiness or success even in his dream,

The great God Shiva may be full of faults and Vishnu may be a repository of all virtues, one is, however, connected with him alone who gladdens one's heart, 

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lives on alms and enjoys a sound sleep

 Jai Sri Ram,

Hearing the reply the sages laughed and said After all your body owes its existence to a mountain, tell us who has even listened to Narada's advice and lived in his home,

He called on and admonished the sons of Daksha and they never saw their home again, it was he who ruined the home of Citraketu, and again Hiranyakasipu, met a similar fate, men and women who listen to Narada's are sure to leave their home and become mendicants, guileless at heart, he bears on his person the marks of a pious man, he would make everyone just like himself, 

Relying on his words you crave a husband who is apathetic by nature, devoid of attributes, shameless,  homeless, naked, has an inauspicious look about him, wears a string of skulls around his neck, is without a family, and has serpents for his ornaments, tell us what happiness do you expect by obtaining such a husband, you have fallen as easy prey to the machinations of that imposter, Shiva married Sati at the intercession of some friends, but later on, he abandoned her and left her to die,

Shiva is carefree now, he lives on alms and enjoys a sound sleep, can women ever stay in the house of habitual recluses,

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my folly

 Jai Sri Ram,

Shiva Replied, Although this is hardly justifiable, the words of the master cannot be set aside at the same time, my lord your command must be respectably carried out, this is my paramount duty, the words of one's parents, teacher, and master must be unquestionably obeyed as conducive to bliss, 

You are my supreme benefactor in every day, therefore, my lord, I bow to your commands, the lord was pleased to hear the well-chosen words of Sankara, which were inspired with devotion, wisdom, and piety,

The Lord Sad, your vow has been kept in mind what I have told you, saying so he went out of sight, Sankara cherished the impression of the vision in his heart, that very moment the seven sages called on Shiva,,

Going to Parvati, you put her love to the test, then directing her father, Himalaya to her, sent her back home, and dispel the doubts, there the seers saw as if she were penance itself personised, the sages said, hear, O daughter of Himacala, why are you practicing such rigorous penance, whom do you worship and wat to you seek, why not confide to us the real secret, I feel very shy in making my submission, you will be amused to hear of my folly, yet my mind has taken a rigid attitude and heeds no advice, it would raise a wall on water, relying on the truth of Naradas's prophecy, I long to fly even without wings, look at my madness, I always covet Shiva as my husband,

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Listen to my appeal, Go and marry Sailaja

 Jai Sri Ram,

Here he instructed the sages in wisdom and there he extolled the virtues of Sri Rama, though passionless and all-wise, the lord was smitten with the pangs of separation from his devotee, in this way a considerable time elapsed,

Devotion to the feet of Sri Rama was ever budding in His heart when Sri Rama saw the self-discipline and affection of Sankara and the indelible stamp of devotion on his heart, the merciful Lord, who fully recognizes services rendered to him,,

And is a mine of beauty and amiability, and an embodiment of great splendor, appeared before Sankara and extolled him in ways more than one, who else that you can accomplish such a vow, He said, Sri Rama admonished Him in many ways and told him of the birth of Parvati, the lord of his infinite compassion narrated at full length the most pious doings of Girija,

Now Shiva, if you have any affection for me, Listen to my appeal, Go and marry Sailaja, grant this boon to me,

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intelligence and bliss

 Jai Sri Ram,

Listen, O daughter of the mountain king, your desire is accomplished, cease all your rigorous penance, and the slayer of Tripura will soon be yours, there have been self-possessed and illumined, but not one of them, Bhavani, performed such penance as this, now cherish in your heart this supreme utterance from heaven, knowing it to be invariably true and ever sacred when your father comes to call you, give up all resistance, and return home at once,

Again, when the seven sages meet you, be assured of the veracity of this oracle, Girija rejoiced to hear this utterance of Brahma echoed by heaven and a thrill ran through her limbs, Yajnavalakya to Bhardwaj-i have thus sung the beautiful story of Uma,

Now hear the charming account of Shambhu, ever since Sati went and quitted her body, Shiva's mind recoiled from everything, he ever repeated the name of the lord of Raghus and heard the recitation of Sri Rama's glories here and there,

The embodiment of intelligence and bliss, the abode of happiness, Shiva, who is ever free from errors, arrogance, and desire, roamed about on earth with his heart fixed on Sri Hari, the delight of the whole world,

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self-mortification

 Jai Sri Ram,

Listen, Mother, I relate to you a vision I saw, A handsome and fair-complexioned noble Brahmana gave me the following exhortations, Recognising the truth of Narada's words go and practice austerity, O mountain maid, the idea has commenced itself to your father and mother as well, Austerity is conducive to joy and puts an end to sorrows, and evils, by virtue of penance the creator creates the universe, by virtue of penance Vishnu protects the whole world, by virtue of penance Sambhu brings about dissolution, by virtue of penance, again Sesa that serpent god bears the burden of earth on his head,

In fact, the entire creation rests on penance, Bhavani, bearing this in mind, goes and practices austerity, hearing these words the mother is filled with wonder, she sent for Himalaya and communicated the vision to him, consoling her parents in many ways Uma set out for penance in a joyous mood, her loving household and parents fell miserable and none could speak a word,

The Sage Vedsira then came and consoled them all, they were comforted when they heard of the glory of Parvati, cherishing in her heart the feet of her dear Lord, Uma went to the forest and began her penance, her delicate frame was little fit for austerity yet she renounced all luxuries fixed her mind on the feet of her Lord, her devotion to the feet of her lord presented a new phase every day, and got so absorbed in penance that she lost all conscious of her body, 

For a thousand years, she lived on roots and fruits alone, while for another thousand years she subsisted on vegetables, for some days her only sustenance was water and air, while for few days she observe a rigorous fast, for these thousand years she maintained herself on the withered leaves of the Bela tree that dropped on the ground, finally, she gave up even dry leaves, UMA THEN COME TO BE KNOWN AS APARNA that living without leaves, seeing her body emaciated through self-mortification the deep voice of Brahma resounded through heaven,

May Lord bless all,

Thanks, please