English
Shabari's Berries
Source: Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kanda (sargas 73–74)
Sita had been carried away. Searching for her, Shri Ram and Lakshmana wandered through the dense forests of the south. Kabandha, freed from his curse, showed them the way: "Near Lake Pampa is the hermitage of the sage Matanga. An ascetic woman named Shabari lives there. Be sure to meet her."
Shabari was no queen and no sage's wife. She was a simple woman of the forest who had served the disciples of the sage Matanga for many years. In their shelter she had learned austerity and come to understand dharma.
Then came the day when the sages of Matanga's forest departed for the heavenly worlds. As they left, they told Shabari, "Stay here. One day Ram, the son of Dasharatha, will come to this hermitage. Receive him with honour. Seeing him, you too will reach the imperishable worlds."
The sages went, and Shabari was left alone. No one knew when Ram would come. But her faith did not waver. Her teachers had said it, so the Lord would surely come.
From the banks of the Pampa she gathered many kinds of forest fruits and roots and kept them carefully, in case Ram came that very day. Time passed, seasons changed, but her waiting never grew tired.
And then one day, two radiant young men were seen walking towards the hermitage. They wore bark garments, carried bows on their shoulders, and their faces held a calm such as Shabari had never seen.
Shabari looked at them, and her eyes filled with tears. The one she had waited for all these years was standing at her door today...
Shabari rose. With folded hands she bowed at the feet of the two brothers and welcomed them in the proper way: water to wash their feet, water to sip, and seats to sit on.
Ram asked her respectfully, "O woman rich in austerity, are your practices free of obstacles? Are your anger and your food held in restraint? Has your service to your teachers borne fruit? Is your mind at peace?"
Shabari said, "Today, seeing you, my austerity has borne fruit and my birth has become worthwhile. Having worshipped you, I shall go to the imperishable worlds where my teachers have gone." Then she said lovingly, "O best of men, for you I have gathered many kinds of forest fruits and roots that grow on the banks of the Pampa." And she offered them to Shri Ram.
Ram said, "From Kabandha I have heard of the great power of your teachers. If you think it fitting, I would like to see it with my own eyes."
Shabari led them through Matanga's forest. She showed them the altar where her teachers had worshipped, still glowing with the radiance of their austerity. She told them that when the sages, weak from fasting, could no longer travel to holy places, the waters of the seven seas came there at their mere thought. The flowers they had offered had still not withered, and the bark garments they had washed and hung up had still not dried.
When she had shown them everything, Shabari folded her hands: "Lord, you have seen it all. Now give me leave. I wish to leave this body and go to the sages whom I served."
Pleased, Ram said, "You have honoured me greatly. Now go wherever you wish, in peace." With his permission, Shabari offered her body into the fire and, shining like a blazing flame, went to the holy realm where her teachers dwelt.
Ram said to Lakshmana, "We have seen this sacred hermitage. Now let us go towards the Pampa, where Sugriva lives." From Shabari's hermitage the journey moved on, the journey that would in time lead to Sita.
What this story teaches
Shabari had neither wealth nor rank. She had unshakeable faith and selfless waiting, and that alone brought God to her door.
The well-known detail that Shabari tasted each berry before giving Ram only the sweet ones is not in the Valmiki Ramayana; it comes from later devotional tradition and folk retellings. Valmiki says only that Shabari had gathered forest fruits and roots from the banks of the Pampa for Ram. Shabari Jayanti is observed in many places on Phalguna Krishna Saptami.
You have read the story — now see your own chart
A free kundali with your dashas and planetary positions from your birth date, time and place. Your first 10 questions to the AI astrologer are free — no card needed.
Make my free kundali