Tulsi Vivah तुलसी विवाह .

Today we celebrate a union, unique. Of a plant much revered, Tulsi तुलसी. And a black round stone Shaligram शालिगराम, Vishnu विष्णु.

Tulsi Vivah तुलसी विवाह .

There are many stories. One of them is about a woman Brinda बृंदा. In love, deeply. With her beloved, Jalandhar जालंधर. Mind, body, soul. The man Jalandhar जालंधर had tendencies, evil. But they say a woman is a man's Shakti शक्ति, power. And love, bestows powers, deep.

Brinda's बृंदा love gave her man Shakti शक्ति. Much. So much. That the Gods began to fear. Vishnu was asked for help. He took the form of Jalandhar जालंधर. Lied and stepped in to claim Brinda's बृंदा love through physical union.

They say, love happened. Gods showered their blessings. Goddesses sang with delight. Brinda बृंदा felt the touch of the divine. Melted. Knowing. He was not her man. He was her God. She became, his Goddess. Jalandhar's Shakti जालंधर शक्ति was no longer his.

Brinda बृंदा had been touched by the divine. She could never be human now. And it wasn't time to be divine. Yet. The earth would call their love a sin. A lie. A deceit. Immoral. And she knew it was divine.

She was torn, infuriated. With herself, with Gods. And most of all with Vishnu विष्णु. If he could not walk with her out in the open sky. How dare he? How dare he reveal to her, her Goddess? His God? She screamed. She shouted. She cried. And in her anger she cursed. She cursed. She cursed.

I hear, it is this curse that led to Ramayan रामायण. In his avatar as Ram राम, Vishnu's विष्णु beloved Sita सीता was abducted, accused and finally separated from him. Brinda's बृंदा curse left Ram राम a lonely king, without his Shakti शक्ति.

Brinda बृंदा ... cried. Tears of pain. Of not belonging. Of being torn between the world of Divine and life of Human. Of being accused. As a sinner. An immoral woman. Oh she cried!

Her tears. One drop at a time. Kept dissolving her human form into the ocean, eternal.

And when. It was all dissolved. All anger. All pain. All sorrow. Even the forgiveness. When it was all dissolved. SHE emerged.

Blessed. By the sky. By the Earth.

At just the right time. In her form, divine. The Goddess Tulsi तुलसी. Her love with her God, Vishnu विष्णु. Their union worshipped. Celebrated. Not just in disguise. By the Gods, in the sky. But also on the Earth. By people. Like you, like me.

Tonight, the moon bears witness to this story of many lives. Of love. That comes in many forms, many disguises. Takes us by surprise. Leaves us longing. Dissolving. In that love, the blessing. In that union, the celebration!