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राम
Sacred Tableau

Goddesses Enter the Palace Disguised as Women

Bala Kanda, Chaupai 315

Doha 318 · Movement 1 of 3

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Moon-faced, deer-eyed women wear garments of many colours and every auspicious ornament. Bangles, girdle bells, and anklets sound beneath their graceful steps while songs make cuckoos ashamed.

Among them enter Shachi, Saraswati, Lakshmi, Bhavani, and other celestial women, each hidden within a mortal form. They join the queens without announcing divinity.

Sky and city overflow with music, yet joy has dissolved the ability to distinguish goddess from woman. The disguise is more than concealment. In the wedding of Sita and Ram, divine and human femininity sing within the same company, sharing ornaments, movement, and blessing until no boundary matters enough to be recognized.

Goddess and mortal woman become indistinguishable when all voices join the same wedding song.

Read the passage from the Manas
A Mithila woman sings auspicious songs, adorned with bangles and waist bells.

AI-created devotional illustration · Chaupai 315

All8couplets300first2/301rest; onehuman noblewoman singer chosen godsdisguisedothersfullmetadataoffcrop.

Source reference and artistic choices

Gita Press code81 undated · PDF pages 300, 301 · printed pages 298, 299. Reader passage: bala-kanda-chaupai-315. Printed numbering may differ.

Source facts

  • Women's moonfaces deerlikeeyes outdoRati pride sourcebeautysimiles, colorfulsaris alljewels auspiciousadornments.
  • Voicesoutdocuckoos, banglesWAISTBELLSanklets sound gaitshamesKamaelephants similes; sky/citymanyinstruments.
  • SACHI SARASVATI LAKSHMI BHAVANIotherwisepuregoddesses assume HUMANWOMANDISGUISES joinROYALWOMEN sing; NOONErecognizedGODDESSES noteveryonenotrecognizeeachother.

Artistic choices

  • Oneanonymousadultheadtwoownhands RIGHTheartLEFTwaist near ONEgoldbellgirdle visiblemultiplebellpendants no sourceexactcount. EyesUPRIGHT partedgentlesingingmouth. Orangecoralveil lowbraidwhiteflowercluster pearlredbindi hoopsbangles sourceclassgeneric notSita/queen/namedgoddess. E03 stainedglassno tears/moonhead/deereyes/elephants, halfbodynoankletsfoot/gait/musiccertificate.
  • Exact poses/gazes/numericalages/clothes/ornamentcounts/geargeometryfastening/materials/spatialframing artistchoices not history or wholeparticipant/anatomy/motion/audible/emotionmotive census. Fullsourceoffcrop facts retained noabsenceinference/corpuscorrection/inventedHindi/publishing. Source comparisons/characterinsults/threats not physicaltransformations/violentevents.
  • Oneforegoundhumanartistrepresentative no secretnamedgoddess inference; allhuman-disguisegoddesses facts fullmetadata. Moon/deer/Rati/cuckoo/elephantbeautyvoicegait similes notphysicalspeciesbody cert.

An imaginative interpretation, not a historical portrait or documentary evidence.

बिधुबदनीं सब सब मृगलोचनि। सब निज तन छबि रति मदु मोचनि।। पहिरें बरन बरन बर चीरा। सकल बिभूषन सजें सरीरा।। सकल सुमंगल अंग बनाएँ। करहिं गान कलकंठि लजाएँ।। कंकन किंकिनि नूपुर बाजहिं। चालि बिलोकि काम गज लाजहिं।। बाजहिं बाजने बिबिध प्रकारा। नभ अरु नगर सुमंगलचारा।। सची सारदा रमा भवानी। जे सुरतिय सुचि सहज सयानी।। कपट नारि बर बेष बनाई। मिलीं सकल रनिवासहिं जाई।। करहिं गान कल मंगल बानीं। हरष बिबस सब काहुँ न जानी।।

All the women had moon-like faces and deer-like eyes. The beauty of each one's form could put even Rati, the goddess of love, to shame. They wore fine garments of every beautiful color. Their bodies were adorned with all manner of ornaments. They had decorated themselves with every auspicious mark. Their singing was so melodious that even the koyal (cuckoo) felt shy. Their bangles, tiny bells, and anklets chimed sweetly. Seeing their graceful gait, even Kamadeva's elephant hung its head. Instruments of many kinds played in celebration. The sky and the city overflowed with auspicious festivity. Shachi, Sarada, Rama (Lakshmi), and Bhavani, along with all the pure, wise celestial women, gathered there. These divine women fashioned beautiful mortal disguises and went to join the company of the queens. They sang sweet, auspicious songs. All were so overcome with joy that none could recognize who was who.