A passage on “Savitri” from the book “Myths, Legends, Concepts and Literary Antiquities of India” By Shri Manoj Das
Savitri, the princess of Madra – Kanyatejaswini (the luminous maiden) – chose to marry price Satyavan of Shalwa, who lived in a forest with his exiled parents, despite the great sage Narada revealing to her the fact that the prince was to die after a year.
Sharing her husband’s humble life in his sylvan world, the princess awaited the fateful moment, unknown to others, but silently preparing herself to face it.
The day arrived. As usual Satyavan set out for the interior of the forest to collect some wood. That day Savitri accompanied him. Suddenly the prince felt giddy and lay down with his head resting on Savitri’s lap – and his spirit quietly slipped out of his body as the princess looked on.
Savitri was no ordinary mortal. Her occult vision revealed to her the god of Death present on the spot. As the god began to walk carrying with him the soul of Satyavan, Savitri follwed him. The compassionate god asked her to return home, accepting her husband’s death as an unalterable reality.
When Savitri continued to follow him, the god offered her boon after boon so that she would feel happy and do his bidding. Savitri obtained boons for the restoration of her blind father-in-law’s vision as well as his kingdom – and when Yama had grown quite impatient – also the boon of mothering worthy children while remaining faithful to her husband.
It was a bit too late by the time Yama realized his faux pas. He had been outwitted.
He had to restore Satyavan to life in order to render his last boon practical.
x….x
if an individual’s pure love could happily alter the destiny of another individual, an advent of Divine Love could surely forestall the arbitrary sway of death over the destiny of mankind.
For in the march of all-fulfilling Time
The hour must come to the Transcendent will
All turns and winds towards his predestined ends
In Nature’s fixed inevitable course
Decreed since the beginning of the worlds
In the deep essence of created things:
Even there shall come as a high crown of all
The end of Death, the death of Ignorance.
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