Shabari

In the Ramayana, the earlier of the
two great Indian epics, a tribal woman
who is a sincere devotee (bhakta) of
the god Rama. Shabari belongs to a
group known as the Shabaras, and so
her name conveys a sense of anonymity, since it is simply the feminine form
of the group’s name. Rama and
Lakshmana stop for some time at
Shabari’s dwelling during their search
for Rama’s kidnapped wife Sita.
Although as a tribal she has very low
social status, Rama graciously receives
her hospitality as a reward for the
devotion with which it is given. In the
Ramcharitmanas, the vernacular
retelling of the Ramayana written by
the poet-saint Tulsidas (1532–1623?),
Shabari tastes each fruit before she
gives it to Rama, to be sure that he will
get only the very sweetest—an act that
violates one of the most pervasive ritual taboos barring the exchange of any
food that has come into contact with
saliva, and particularly from lower to
higher status people. Yet in the story
Rama eats the fruits very happily
because of the love with which they
are given. The message in this episode
is consistent with a primary theme in
the Ramcharitmanas, namely, the
power of devotion to override or overturn conventional social norms. Soon
after Rama and Lakshmana’s visit,
Shabari dies a happy death.