Tulsidas Ji Ki Kahani | Ratnavali Ke Ek Vachan Ne Jeevan Kaise Badal Diya? | Part 1

The Story

It was the middle of the night. Rain was falling, and the river flowed at full force. But one man was so desperate to meet his wife that he saw neither the storm, nor the raging river, nor the fear of his own death. According to the popular telling, what he caught hold of to cross the river, thinking it was a piece of wood, was a corpse; and what he took for a rope to climb his in-laws' wall was a living serpent. That man's name was Tulsidas.

But what did his wife Ratnavali say to him that night — words that turned a man drowned in attachment to his wife into an immortal devotee of Lord Shri Ram?

This is the story of attachment turning into devotion.

Key Moments

A Difficult Childhood and the First Seed of Ram

Scholars hold different views about Tulsidas Ji's year and place of birth. But he is regarded as a great Ram devotee and poet of the 16th century. According to popular tradition, his childhood passed in extremely difficult circumstances. In childhood he was called "Ram Bola". The saint Narsidas gave him shelter and sowed the seed of Shri Ram's story in his heart. Ram Bola was extremely gifted. He studied the Vedas, Puranas and scriptures, and later became famous by the name Tulsidas.

Marriage to Ratnavali and Deep Attachment

According to a popular life story, he was married to Ratnavali. Tulsidas Ji loved his wife deeply. Slowly this love became such a deep attachment that even a brief separation from Ratnavali became unbearable for him.

The Midnight Rain and the Raging River

One day, while Tulsidas Ji was away from home, Ratnavali left for her parents' home with her brother. When Tulsidas Ji returned and did not find Ratnavali there, his heart grew restless. Outside, heavy rain was falling. In the dark night the river was in spate. People tried to stop him. But before his longing to meet his wife, every danger seemed small. It is said that without caring for his life, he crossed the river and reached Ratnavali's parents' home at midnight.

Ratnavali's Words — The One Word That Changed a Life

Seeing him soaked in the rain and in such a state, Ratnavali was more pained than pleased. She felt that this was not love but an attachment that could steal the discernment of even a learned man. Then she spoke to Tulsidas Ji the words that tradition has preserved:

"Asti janma mein mama tāme aisī prīti,
tesī jo Śrī Rāma mein hota nā to bhava bhītī"

[transcript unclear — needs check: the couplets lines are not clear in the auto-caption.]

That is — the love you have for this mortal body of mine, made of bone and skin: had even half of it been for Lord Shri Ram, you would have been freed from the fear of this world.

This was not merely a wife's scolding. It was a mirror in which Tulsidas Ji saw himself for the first time. The courage with which he had crossed the river without fearing death — could he not cross the ocean of worldly existence with the same courage? The love that had not let him stop even in the storm — if that same love turned toward Shri Ram, how much his life could change.

From Attachment to Devotion

Ratnavali's words pierced his heart like an arrow. For a few moments he stood silent. His clothes were soaked with rain, but now his eyes were wet with repentance. The body for which he had risked his life would itself perish one day.

According to the story tradition, Tulsidas Ji set out from there the same night. But the man who returned was no longer the old Tulsidas. The worldly attachment within him had turned into an intense longing to attain Shri Ram. The love that had been confined to one mortal body now began to flow toward the eternal, imperishable Lord Shri Ram.

But the path to Shri Ram was not simple. First he had to meet the devotee without whom his longing for Ram's darshan could not be fulfilled — Pawan-putra Hanuman Ji. How did Tulsidas Ji meet Hanuman Ji? And when Shri Ram stood before him, why could he not recognise his Lord? That wonderful story is in the second part of his life story.

Explanation

Ratnavali's words showed Tulsidas Ji how great the power of love is. The same love that flowed toward a mortal body, when it turned toward the imperishable Lord, changed a man's whole life. Between attachment and devotion there is only a difference of direction; the power is the same, only its goal changes.