Śaśikalā

Śaśikalā was the daughter of Subāhu, king of Kāśī, and the wife of Sudarśana, king of Ayodhyā. She is one of the notable women of the third Skanda of the Devī Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa. Parādevī came to her in a dream and told her to marry Sudarśana. She turned away all the kings who had gathered for her svayaṃvara (the ceremony in which a princess chooses her husband). She did not change her mind, even when her parents were threatened by powerful kings, among them Yudhājit, and pressed her to choose another. Her firm devotion to dharma and to the command of Parādevī in the end led to the direct appearance of Parādevī on the battlefield.

Background and the dream

Śaśikalā was the dearly loved only daughter of Subāhu, king of Kāśī (Vārāṇasī). A brāhmaṇa who had come from the āśrama of Bharadvāja told her about Sudarśana, and her heart was drawn to him. That same night she saw Parādevī in a dream, who spoke to her: “Sudarśana is my devotee. Choose him as your husband. By my command he will fulfil all your wishes.” Śaśikalā woke in wonder and joy. She decided firmly that she would marry Sudarśana and no one else. She told this only to her closest friend.

Her resolve at the svayaṃvara

Her father Subāhu announced a svayaṃvara, and great kings from all over Bhārata came with their armies. Śaśikalā secretly sent a trusted brāhmaṇa to the āśrama of Bharadvāja with her message for Sudarśana. She told him that she had chosen him in her mind and soul, that she would accept no one else, that she would die if he refused, and that she trusted the command of Parādevī to bring them together.

On the day of the svayaṃvara Śaśikalā refused to enter the hall. She told her mother plainly that she would not choose from among the gathered kings in the way of an ordinary svayaṃvara. To show herself before many kings and choose among them was not in keeping with her sense of purity and self-respect, just as a patnīvratā (a wife true to her husband) does not look at many men. She had already chosen Sudarśana with mind, speech and action, and she would accept no other. Her mother tried every plea. She pointed out that Sudarśana was poor, had been driven into exile and had enemies. Her father was troubled because he could not meet the demands of the assembled kings. But Śaśikalā did not move.

The secret wedding

Subāhu in the end gave way to her resolve. The assembly expected the svayaṃvara on the next day. Subāhu called learned brāhmaṇas and held the wedding in secret at night. It had the proper Vedic rites, the sacred fire, the lājahoma (offering of parched grain) and the pradakṣiṇā (walk around the fire). The marriage was lawful, in keeping with dharma, and complete. Subāhu gave Sudarśana a large dowry. He spoke with real admiration of the courage of Manoramā, who had come with her son.

Character and teaching

The Devī Bhāgavata shows Śaśikalā as a woman of deep inner purity (ātma-naiṣṭhikya) and firm devotion (dṛḍha-bhakti). She took no confidence from wealth, rank or outward circumstances, and Sudarśana had none of these. Her confidence came wholly from the direct command of Parādevī. The text states clearly that she was ready to face death rather than give up her vow.

The Purāṇa names Sukanyā as her example. Sukanyā accepted the aged ṛṣi Cyavana as her husband at her father’s word. Śaśikalā held this up as her own pattern for a choice of husband that goes beyond social calculation.

Life after marriage

Sudarśana was restored to Ayodhyā by the direct help of Parādevī. Śaśikalā went with him and became queen of the kingdom of Kośala. Her story runs from the dream of Parādevī to the founding of the temple of Parādevī at Ayodhyā. It shows her as one of those through whom the will of Parādevī was carried out on earth.

Sources

• Devī Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, Skanda 3, Chapters 17–25 (the dream in Chapter 17, the svayaṃvara in Chapters 18–21, the secret wedding in Chapter 22)