Heroic Mothers and Noble Sons

Bhagavan Baba spoke to His devotees on Mother’s Day in 1996 and urged them to see the mothers as strong and not weak. He also encouraged them to respect and love them.

Embodiments of Divine love! For the benefit of others alone trees give fruits, rivers carry water, and cows yield milk. Likewise, the human body is given for rendering help to others. But not recognizing this truth, man uses his body for selfish purposes. Man today behaves in a more degraded manner than trees, rivers, and cows.

Man is forgetting the purpose for which he has been endowed with a body. From dawn to dusk he is immersed wholly in selfish pursuits. He has no comprehension of what selflessness means. Man considers the phenomenal world as the only reality.

People mistake the unreal for the real and the real for the unreal.
But the real is the only One. And there is nothing else in the universe.

This visible universe is made up of three gunas [qualities] (satwa [pure], rajas [active], and tamas [dullness]). This is the reason for describing the cosmos as Stree [feminine aspect]. The term Stree has three components: “Sa“, “Ta“, and “Ra“. “Sa” signifies the satwic quality. This comprises qualities like forbearance, compassion, and love. “Ta” signifies the tamoguna, which includes qualities like modesty, bashfulness, fear, and patience. “Ra” signifies the rajoguna represented by such qualities as courage, sacrifice, and the adventurous spirit. Every being born in the world has only feminine qualities. Merely on the basis of the physical form, a distinction is made between men and women. The three qualities in the term Stree are to be found both in men and women.

Role of the mother

The term Stree should not be treated lightly. The Bhagavad-Gita lists seven attributes to the feminine principle: Fame, Wealth, Speech, Wisdom, Intelligence, Fortitude, and Determination. The Mother principle that embodies these seven potencies is highly sacred. Wherever you turn, you will see manifestations of the feminine principle in nature. When any person goes abroad, the first question that is asked is, “What is your mother-tongue?” No one asks, “What is your father-tongue?” This shows how much importance is attached to the role of the mother.

The mother fosters the child in the womb and goes through all travails to protect the child. There is no greater love in the world than maternal love. Hence the ancients accorded the highest honor to the mother and declared: “Matru devo bhava” (esteem the mother as Divine) and “Pitru devo bhava” (esteem the father as Divine). For every person the first preceptor is the mother. It is from the mother that a child learns its first words of speech, the first steps in movement, and many other primary lessons in behavior. Hence, the mother stands out as the reflected image of prakriti (nature).

Heroic women in Indian history

Despite the evidences of recognition of the feminine principle’s greatness, women have been described as abala (the weaker vessel). This appellation is applied to women because of the secondary status accorded to them in the performance of yagnas (sacrifice) and other rituals, though participation together with men was permitted. Women could not perform sacrifices and rituals by themselves. Women could perform charitable and religious acts only in association with their spouses. Though the term abala is applied to women in this specific context alone, women are not weak at all in terms of strength or ability. We have innumerable examples of the strength displayed by women in the world.

As against three potencies attributed to men, women are said to have seven potencies (according to the Gita). Can you call Savitri—who made the Lord of death restore to life her dead husband—as weak? Can Anasuya, who transformed the Divine Trinity Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva into three babies and played with them be called an abala (weak woman)? Sumathee was a great lady who stopped the sun from rising because her husband was predestined to die the next morning. Could she be termed as abala? No. Was Draupadi, who bore with fortitude for 14 years all the ordeals her husbands went through, a weak woman? Can Sita, who shared with Rama all the hardships of life in the forest and achieved ultimate victory, be called weak? Can Gargi, who could carry on the debate with the Raja yogi Janaka in a dauntless spirit, be called a weak woman?

There is any number of such heroic women in recorded history. Though physically women may appear weak, in reality they are full of strength. As the embodiment of the three gunas [qualities], women are endowed with exceptional strength. Even in the spiritual field women display their boundless capacity.

Gratitude to the mother

It is in her role as mother that there is the highest expression of a woman’s strength. Every child that is born owes its existence to the mother. Hence everyone should be extremely grateful to one’s mother.

The mother is the symbol of the Universal mother and father of the Divine Lord. There is a popular prayer in Sanskrit describing the Lord as everything:

Oh Lord of Lords!
You are my mother and father,
My kinsman and friend,
My wealth and knowledge,
My everything.

The mother is the first teacher of speech. The first words taught to the child are Amma, Appa (mother, father). Then the teaching of the alphabet starts. The first lessons are: “Om Namah Shivaya” or “Om Namo Narayanaya.” The teaching of language begins with the teaching of names of the Divine—Shiva and Narayana. In ancient times, the mother occupied the place of the first preceptor for the child. Unfortunately, in the world today what are the parents teaching the child? They are teaching them, “A, B, C, D.” Nor is that all. They go on to teach the child some meaningless stuff like: “Baa Baa black sheep!” (laughter) The mothers imagine that they are teaching something wonderful to the children. This is wrong. Teaching of the alphabet should begin with learning the names of the Lord.

Ancient mothers taught truth and righteousness

This was the way the mothers in ancient Bharat taught their children. The ancient teachings exhorted the people Sathyam vada, Dharmam chara—Speak the truth, adhere to righteousness. No mother taught the child to speak untruth. No mother would think of asking the child to follow unrighteousness. Their sole desire was to see that their children secured happiness by leading worthy and meritorious lives. Hence, in the attitude toward parents, the children should give the primary place to the mother.

Today we need to promote such ideal mothers. This is all the more necessary because the modern trends are disturbing. The tendency (among the affluent families) is to entrust the child from birth to a nurse or an ayah. The child does not get the love of the mother. The child has no knowledge of what a mother means.

In ancient times, Queen Madhalasa was teaching the children from their infancy the greatness of vairagya (detachment). She used to sing a lullaby while putting the children to sleep:

Placing you in the cradle of Omkara
On the bed of the great saying ‘Tatt twam asi‘
Swinging to the music of Awareness, dear child,
May the Gods lull you to sleep!
The four Vedas are the four chains of the cradle.
May your heart be filled with the nine forms of devotion.

Because the mothers in ancient times filled the child with devotion and detachment, Bharat [India] stood out as a land of sacrifice, of wisdom, of yoga, and contentment. Because today mothers do not bring up the child in this spirit, this sacred land is ceasing to be one of sacrifice and is becoming a pleasure-loving nation. The pleasures are turning into breeders of disease. Sacrifice in ancient times made this country the yogabhumi (land of yoga). Our goal should be to become yogis, not rogis (victims of disease).

There may be bad sons but bad mothers are rare

Embodiments of Divine love! You must be prepared to make even the supreme sacrifice for showing your gratitude to the mothers. Even the avatars Rama, Krishna, and others, owed their advent to their mothers. Everyone should pray for sacred mothers who will bring forth good children. There may be bad sons in the world, but bad mothers are rare. Most mothers today lament over the bad behavior of their children. No son who has caused distress to his mother can come to anything good. The Telugu saying is: “There can be no prosperity in a home where the mother sheds tears.” Today we need sons who will please their mothers.

The mothers, on their part, should teach the children always to speak the truth. When a mother asks the son, “Where have you been?” he should not prevaricate. He must tell the truth and confess his mistakes if he has done anything wrong. Very few children tell the truth to their parents today. Of what use is education for such children?

Today’s boys and girls are the future redeemers of the nation. Hence, the parents should bring them up on right lines so that they may be ideal citizens.

Women in various places observe what is called Ladies’ Day. Only by making speeches or holding devotional singing should not observe the day; they should endeavor to help the poor and the destitute. Helpless women who have no means of livelihood should be taught some occupation like tailoring to enable them to earn an income. Slum dwellers should be helped to keep their huts clean. The environment also should be cleaned to help the children grow in a pure atmosphere. Proper housekeeping should also be taught to those people. Disease is caused mainly by unhygienic surroundings. Moreover, the air, the water, the mind, everything is polluted. This pollution is causing several new types of diseases.

Example of Vidyasagar

In the past, mothers used to play a big part in molding their children. For instance, there is the example of Easwara Chandra Vidyasagar. He was a native of Calcutta. He justified his name by being a great scholar (Vidyasagar means ocean of knowledge). He belonged to a very poor family. His mother brought up her son at the expense of her own food. Pursuing his studies under the most adverse circumstances, he completed his education and found a job on a salary of Rs. 50 per month. In due course, he rose to an eminent position by hard work.

One day he approached his mother and said, “Mother, I have reached an eminent position thanks to your blessings and guidance. I am now able to fulfill any of your wishes.” The mother said, “Not yet, my son. I have three desires, but I shall tell them in due course.” Reaching a still higher position after sometime, Easwara Chandra renewed his appeal to his mother. The mother said, “Our village is poor and the village has no school. Please set up a school here so that the children will not have to go outside for their education. That school will be an ornament for me.” The son carried out her wish.

Later, the mother revealed her second wish. She wanted Easwara Chandra to set up a small hospital in the village to serve the villagers. She said this would be her second ornament she wanted from him. He set up a hospital as desired by his mother. In the following years, Vidyasagar rose to greater eminence, but remained as humble and free from conceit as ever. He asked his mother what her third desire was. She said that he should build a small rest house (choultry) for travelers passing through the village to stay. Vidyasagar built a small community hall in the village.

Today’s educated persons get puffed up over their petty educational attainment. It was his mother’s teachings that made Vidyasagar practice humility.

Not penance, not rituals, not pilgrimages
Are of any avail in crossing
The ocean of human existence.
Only service to the good
Can take one across. (Sanskrit hymn)

Service is most important. It helps to promote humility and to further the oneness of mankind. No room should be given for ostentation. True devotion is free from exhibitionism.

Children should recognize the supremacy of maternal love, which is equal to Divine love. Revere and love the mother. That is the meaning of Mother’s Day. The parents are living symbols of God. Children must make them happy.

Source: Sathya Sai Speaks, Vol. 29

The most direct method of achieving spiritual success is nishkama karma, action without any attention or attachment to the fruit therefrom, action as duty, action as dedication, action as worship.

~Baba