Monday, February 20, 2006

Glories of Tulasi Devi

1. Tulasi is the essence of all devotional service.
2. All parts of Tulasi are spiritual, especially Her shade (akin to being embraced by your mother and feeling protected).
3. If one with devotion applies Tulasi paste to their Lord Krishna deity, they will always live close to Krishna.
4. If one puts the mud from the base of the the Tulasi tree on their body (on your forehead) before worshipping their deity, they get the result of one hundred days worship each day.
5. One who sees or goes near a house or garden with a Tulasi plant in it, gets rid of all their sinful reactions- including the sin of killing a brahmana.
6. She is krishna-jivani (life of Krishna), therefore wherever She is, Krishna will always be there.
7. A house with Tulasi present never falls on bad times i.e. a person will become more tolerant to material calamities that occur and becomes purer than all holy places.
8. In Kali-yaga if one remembers, worships, keeps, plants or performs kirtana in front of Her, they burn all sinful reactions and return to Krishna's abode.
9. If one smells the fragrance of Tulasi they become purified. However one should not try and enjoy this smell as it is only for Krishna.
10. Lord Krishna and all the demigods are present wherever Tulasi mud is found.
11. By offering Tulasi to Krishna one attains the results of all kinds of austerity, charity and sacrifice.
12. If one puts offered Tulasi leaves in their mouth or on their head, they attain Krishna's abode.
13. The worship of Tulasi rescues ancestors from the cycle of brith and death.
14. Remembering or telling the glories of Tulasi one will never take brith again.
15. One can use Tulasi again and again as she never loses Her purity.
16. The shade from a Tulasi tree removes the pain of being.
17. Yamaraj and his servants will not go near a house where Tulasi is worshipped, even if a Manjari is kept in the mouth of a sinful person at the time of death, the Yamaduttas will not come near.
18. Tulasi Maharani should be looked aftered very well, give Her the best pot and the best light. If you are willing to spend lots of money on your own wife why not spend it on Krishna's. If you give Her a lot She will in turn give you Krishna.
19. She is the nurse of the universe, always giving shelter to anyone.
20. She goes through so much, so much austerirty just to encourage people to become devotees of the Lord, so why cant we do the same.
21. One should offer Krishna new leaves as He likes to decorate Himslef with them.
22. Offering a single Manjari is the same as offering all varities of fruits and flowers (Padma Purana).
23. All the deimgods reside within Tulasi, therefore by worshipping Her, all demigods are also worshipped.
24. Before taking the food offering away from Krishna it should be offered to Tulasi Maharani, to the cowherd boys, gopi's, the Brajvasi's and all Krishna's consorts.
25. Finally...Doesnt matter how many offerings of food are made, if do not add Tulasi when offering them, Krishna will not accept it!

This should encourage one to better appreciate Tulasi Maharani, because in a plant form, She is often neglected. Had She had come as Vrinda Devi we would treat Her very differently.

(Source: H.H. Bhakti Visvambhara Madhava Swami
Tulasi Devi Seminar, Jan 2006, Soho St)