Selection of groom for Mother Parvati is a very complex one in Sambalpur. There is no wonder that the symbolic farther of Lord Siva moves round the city and finally reaches a place where he gets the news that there is a girl suitable for his son.
They place the marriage proposal to the girl’s father (Kanyapita) for the marriage of Lord Siva with their daughter. And as a matter of common practice, the Kanyapita asks the father of the groom and the seniors present as to the profession of the boy and his material status. Needless to mention that the father of the groom (Barapita) never hesitates to tell the truth.
“My son i.e. Lord Siva has no home. He lives in Smashan (graveyard). He has neither land nor property of any kind. He remains almost necked or at best wears a deer skin at times. He has poisonous snakes (cobras) round his neck all the times. He always puts ash on his body,” says the groom’s father.
And hearing these all, it is obvious for any father to refuse the proposal as no father wants to give the hands of his daughter to someone who has no home or any material possession. And the end result is that he blatantly refuses the marriage proposal and with folded hands requests the guests to return their home.
But this is not end of the process. The groom’s father then narrates the power and divine clout of his son. “My son is not just an ordinary boy. He is God of the Gods (Dev Dev Mahadev). He controls the entire world. He is the reason behind the creation and destruction. Without him the creation is next to impossible. He has got that power even to destroy the entire world within twinkle of an eye, so also the power of his creativity,” narrates the groom’s father.
And hearing all these, the Kanyapita and the family members pause for a while and have no other option than to give their consent for the marriage as getting such a boy as son in law and husband of their daughter is really beyond their reach and also a matter of luck for them. And with immense pleasure they give their consent for the marriage that is solemniSed every year here on the day of Sital Sasthi.
These are just formalities before the marriage every year. Still then people of the city do it as part of the tradition and this is also a practice before any marriage. “But the unification of Mother Parvati and Lord Siva i.e. Prakriti with Purusha, is fate accompli as no one can stop it. We are just doing it to celebrate the divine occasion,” says Abhisek Mishra of the Yatra Samanway Samity.