The Mother
The author reminds us of the role of Sai as the mother in our lives. She pleads with us to recognize the compassion of Mother Sai, which surpasses the love of physical mothers. Although she uses the names of Hindu forms of God, the message is for people of all faiths.
People conceive of God in various ways: as Saraswati, the giver of wisdom, as Lakshmi, the giver of prosperity, as Vishnu, the preserver and protector of man, as Vighneshwara, the remover of all obstacles in human progress, as Rama, the embodiment of dharma [right action], as Krishna, the embodiment of prema [love], and so on. Aspirants and seekers have realized God in these forms, according to their inclinations. We have with us today divinity in human form, Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. From all that we see, hear, and experience, we can assert that Baba is unique because He is indeed the divine mother in human form.
Baba urges us to revere the mother as God. The mother fosters the body and the mind. More importantly, the mother is the pillar of the home, the society, and the nation. Ultimately, the mother knows the means to mental peace, inner silence, spiritual courage, and unwavering contentment, which is the greatest treasure that spiritual discipline can give man. Now, one can get all these from Mother Sai.
Sai is premaswaroopa [embodiment of love]. He loves all and guides all. His helping hand is available to one and all, when and where the need arises. Sai’s charm and easy-to-approach attitude transform us into children who feel free to confide their troubles in their [Sai] mother. Love is His lesson, His medium of instruction, and the consummation of His educative process. He seeks love; He blesses loving actions, no matter how miniscule. He plants love in the driest and stoniest of hearts.
How lovingly the Mother [Sai] admonishes us to remove fear and doubt from our minds! “Do not call yourselves the children of sin. There is no sin worse than that. You are amritaputras, heirs of immortality. You have the Lord Himself residing in your hearts. He is the antaryamin, the inner motivator of every being in creation. How then can you be the child of sin?” He asks. Just as He [in Krishna incarnation] responded to the call of Draupadi [Pandavas’ wife, who was given the gift of clothing as she was being publicly humiliated], Sai now responds to every yearning call. For instance, at the end of His stay for a few days at Horsley Hills [a resort hill station in India], Baba made it a point to shower His grace and love on a buffalo that had delivered loads of water to the devotees on the hill. He stroked and blessed the buffalo most endearingly. Such is the unbounded love of Mother Sai.
Mother Sai is compassion itself. Often, we continue our old habits despite His counsel or command. But, He does not withhold His grace and love from us. Instead, He pardons us and urges us to repent for our faults. He encourages us to improve, slowly and steadily, correcting ourselves. He watches our step at every stage. He teaches us patience and tolerance. He exhorts us to forget the harm others have done to us as well as the good that we have done to them.
Mother [Sai] may not speak to you directly. The mere sight of that radiant face, full of joy and mercy, gives us comfort and confidence. His silent glance is more eloquent to the listening heart than a hundred words. Indeed, it is only in the depth of silence that the voice of God can be heard.
In His presence, doubts evaporate like a patch of shallow water exposed to the burning Sun. His words are charged with love. If we take one step toward Him, He says that He takes a hundred steps toward us. “Bring bhakti [devotion to God] and lay it here; take from here, shakti [divine energy] instead,” says Baba. “Bring what you now have, namely, sorrows, grief, worries, and anxieties, and take from Me joy and peace, courage and confidence,” He advises us.
He guards and guides us like a mother. He feeds us and cures us. What can we offer Him in return except the prayer that He makes us into flutes that carry His breath, conferring on us the divine music of eternal joy.
He gives us of the best
And, the best of us we shall return;
He has never failed us; nor ever will,
Always behind us, so seldom seen,
He is our dearest Mother Supreme.
~Vidya S. Madgaonkar, Hubli, India
Source: Sanathana Sarathi, April 1978
