Shri Tulsi Chalisa

Shri Tulsi Chalisa is a devotional hymn to Tulsi Maharani, the holy basil plant worshipped as a goddess and as Vishnupriya, the beloved of Lord Vishnu. Tulsi stands in the courtyard of many Hindu homes, and the Chalisa explains why she is given such honour. It does not tell one long story. It describes her greatness, the rules of her worship and what devotees ask of her.

The opening doha bows to Tulsi Maharani and asks her to remove troubles. The first verses say that Vishnu gave her honour and that her fame spread across the world (see the Vishnu Chalisa). It calls her Vishnupriya, a source of happiness in the three worlds, and says no worship of Bhagwan is successful without her, and that Vishnu does not dwell in a house where she does not live. The Puranic tradition tells of Vrinda, the devoted wife whose story is linked with the origin of Tulsi, and of her marriage with Shaligram, the form of Vishnu. This tradition is not told in the Chalisa itself.

The Chalisa then names the greatness of the month of Kartik, which the whole world knows. In this month, on Dev Uthani Ekadashi, Tulsi Vivah is celebrated in many homes. The verses say that an unmarried girl who worships Tulsi gets a good groom, that a woman who worships her daily is happy in wealth and comfort, that an old woman finds devotion and joy, and that one who worships with faith crosses the ocean of worldly life. It adds that a Bhagwat katha or yagya is not successful without her, that she is present in yantra and tantra, and that she is of the form of a medicinal herb (aushadhi roop). Tulsi is well known in Ayurveda, but this is a devotional text and illness should be treated with a doctor''s advice.

A long run of verses begins with "Namo namo," saluting her as the giver of happiness, the remover of sorrow, the giver of wealth, the cutter of sin (agh), the remover of her devotees'' pain, the one who humbles the proud, the one who carries across the world, who improves the next world and who increases good thinking while ending bad thinking. The devotee then prays humbly: he does not know the rules of worship and asks forgiveness, asks that his body be made pure and that his wishes be fulfilled.

The last part gives the vidhi. One who worships for twelve months has no equal. First bring Gangajal and bathe the plant with it (see the Ganga Chalisa), then offer sandalwood, akshat, flowers, incense, a lamp and naivedya, take achaman with Gangajal, meditate with a pure heart, recite the Chalisa and offer a stuti. One who does this daily has no trouble in the body. The Chalisa also advises keeping the Kartik sadhana and sleeping on a clean floor, and says that every wish held in the mind is sure to be fulfilled. The closing doha says that one who recites it gains from Govind the fruit of his heart''s wish (see the Lakshmi Chalisa, since Tulsi is also linked with Lakshmi in tradition). These are matters of faith, to be taken alongside effort.