Revere the mother

The mother is man's first Guru (preceptor). She gives the physical body to him. Besides, she gives man, the father. She alone can point the father to the child and draw his love and care towards it. The mother bears, fosters and moulds the child into human-ness and, therefore, gratitude is due to her first and foremost. Next, the father. He clothes and feeds, helps you to grow and then, points out the Guru, the Preceptor, for you. So be grateful to the father.

The teacher sharpens your intellect, broadens your vision, endows you with discrimination, and helps you to attain higher levels of consciousness and wider horizons of love. Therefore, one has to offer gratitude to the Guru also. The mother leads you to the father, the father leads you to the Guru and the Guru leads you to God. Today, we have mothers who place the children under the care of the father and many fathers who place children under the care of Gurus, but few Gurus lead the pupils to God. The parents promote the health and strength of the body; the Guru reveals the Resident, the Inner Reality in the body.

My life is my Message. So, I am setting an example of reverence to the Mother. Nature is the mother in whose lap mankind grows. And Nature fondles the child and says, "Baabu, That is your Father, See." Though Mother Nature draws attention to God, the children seldom pay heed. How can they, who do not love the mother that fosters them with affection and zeal, adore the Master of Nature?

"Children! You have come here and gone through the course of studies successfully. Besides developing scholarship, you must live according to the wishes of your parents. You must earn great fame for them. You must maintain the honor they receive from people. By your actions you must please them and increase their happiness."

This day is Eashwaraamba Day. The significance of the day is that it is celebrated as Children's Day, a day when little children are to be reminded of the ideal, a day when she presented an ideal. No one can escape death, but the aim of everyone should be to remind oneself at the time of death of the Divine or have some holy or sacred thoughts. The importance of this day is known to many. Kasthuri also spoke about it now. There is a saying in Telugu: "The proof of the good is the way they die." Genuine devotion is evidenced during the last moments. I shall point out a small incident concerning the goodness of Eashwaraamba.

The Summer Classes were on at Bangalore. In the morning at 7, breakfast had to be served to the students. They went round with Nagara Sankeerthan (street singing of spirituals) and returned at 6. I gave them Darshan (audience) at its close. Then, I went for my bath. Meanwhile, Eashwaramba had finished her bath; she drank her coffee as usual quite happily, and took her seat on the inner verandah. All of a sudden proceeding to the bathroom, she cried out. "Swaami, Swaami, Swaami," thrice. At this, I responded: "Coming, Coming." Within that period she breathed her last. What greater sign of goodness is needed? She had no need to be served and nursed. Swaami will come to the memory at that time only for a very few. The mind will usually seek and stay on some object or the other, some jewelry or valuables.

From the ground floor, she called: "Swaami! Swaami!' I replied, "Coming, Coming," and she was gone. It was like the elephant's calling and the Lord proceeding to bless it - the two wires achieving connection, the release happening instantaneously.

This is the authentic consummation that life must strive for. Beside her at the time she had her daughter Venkamma, her granddaughter Shailaja, but she called out only for Swaami. Getting this yearning at the final moment is the fruit of holy purity. It is the sign of an ideal adorable life. Such attitude must emerge of its own accord and not by means of some external force. Here is an example to learn from. Once, there was a man whose devotion was great. He had four sons. In order that their names may help him to remember the Lord, he had named them Govinda, Naaraayana, Krishna and Raama. He thought that he could, on some pretext or other, have the Lord's name on his tongue. To facilitate his plan, he started a factory and kept all of them busily employed there, so that they could respond to his calling them by name.

The day when he had to yield to death arrived, he called Govinda; the son came near saying, "Father! I am here." He called Naaraayana; "I am here father;" he too stood by his bed. He called Raama; Raama came to him and asked him what he desired to confide in him. Finally he called Krishna. He too bent low and wished to know what message the father had for him. He said, "Don't hesitate, tell me what you want to say." Seeing around him all the four sons, the dying man's mind was seized with anxiety. He blurted out "All of you are here! Who is in the factory?" Those were his last words. That was his last thought.

When one is involved in the world only worldly thoughts will emerge at the end. To those who yearn with full heart for the Lord at that time, the Lord will present Himself. So, one has to attach oneself to kith and kin and respect them so long as one is concerned with the world. One must need to humor them. But, one must offer unstinted love and loyalty all through life to the Lord alone.