The Crow Form Becomes Dear because It Carries Bhushundi to Rama
Uttara Kanda, Doha 115
Doha 115 · Movement 2 of 2
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Bhushundi looks upon the dark feathers of his crow body with tenderness. This is the form in which love for Rama's feet ripened, the form whose eyes received the Lord's darshana, the form from which every old doubt flew away.
What arrived through a sage's curse has become a blessing rare even among sages. The humble body once given in anger now crosses ages, visits Ayodhya, sits beneath the wish-fulfilling tree, and pours Rama-katha into the listening sky.
Garuda sees the wonder before him. Spiritual glory has not erased the crow or replaced it with celestial splendor. Grace has made the very vessel of the journey precious. Bhushundi does not love the body for its beauty or permanence. He loves it because Rama met him within it. The apparent curse remains visible, yet devotion has turned its meaning completely toward joy.
When Rama is found within a form, even the form born of a curse becomes a cherished shrine.
Read the passage from the Manas
ताते यह तन मोहि प्रिय भयउ राम पद नेह। निज प्रभु दरसन पायउँ गए सकल संदेह।।114(क)।। भगति पच्छ हठ करि रहेउँ दीन्हि महारिषि साप। मुनि दुर्लभ बर पायउँ देखहु भजन प्रताप।।114(ख)।।
Therefore this body became dear to me through love for Rama's feet. I beheld my own Lord's darshana, and all doubts departed. I stubbornly held to the path of devotion, and the great sage gave me a curse. Yet I received a boon rare even for sages. Behold the glory of devotional practice!