Matrdevo Bhava May your Mother be your God

“Matr�devo Bhava” (May your Mother be your God) Taittiriya Upanishad 1. 11. 2 IN MEMORIAM Ms. PARUL BAZAZ 1

God as Mother Worship your mother as God PART I 2

God as Mother Gayatri, the Mother of Vedas (Atharva Veda 19. 71. 1) v When King Vishvaratha meditated and prayed, God appeared to him as ‘Mother Gayatri’, who gave him the famous Gayatri Mantra. v Whoever chants the Gayatri Mantra regularly, attains a great reward. v Because Vishvaratha obtained this great Mantra for all humanity, he was henceforth called ‘Vishvamitra’ (the friend of all). 3

Mother Sarasvati • As Mother Sarasvati, God is the patron Deity of Vedas, music, arts and all knowledge. • Sarasvati River, the earthly manifestation of Devi Sarasvati gave rise to Vedic. Harappan culture, the oldest form of Hindu Dharma. • In the honor of Mother Sarasvati, we celebrate the festival of Vasant Panchami. • Our own mother is also like Devi Sarasvati, because she teaches us good things throughout our lives with a lot of love and patience. 4

Mother Shakti: God as our Protector 5

God as Mother Durga: Our Protector Our own mother also protects us from harm 6

God as Mother Lakshmi Our Mother sacrifices her own pleasures to provide us with food, clothing, shelter, books and all our other needs. "Sage Parashar said: O Maitreya! Always a companion of Vishnu and the Mother of this Universe, Devi Lakshmi is eternal. Vishnu is omnipresent, so is She. If She is speech, Vishnu is the object of description. Vishnu is the Law, and She is the Policy. Lord Vishnu is knowledge, she is intelligence. He is Dharma, She is good karma. If Vishnu is the Creator, She is the Creation (that abides eternally with Him). He is the mountain, She is Earth. He is the virtue of contentment, She is the all satisfying. If Lord Vishnu is desire, She is the object of desire. He is the sacred Vedic ritual, she is the priestly fee. . . " (Vishnu Purana 1. 8. 17 -20 ab) 7

The Mothers of God Obey your mothers, remember that she gave birth to us PART II 8

Mother Parvati The mother of Lord Ganesha and Lord Karttikeya 9

Lord Rama – the Devoted Son • “Blessed is King Dasharatha of Ayodhya, because he has the son Rama, who always follows the words his mother and his father. ” (Saint Tulsidas). • He always respected his mothers Kaushalya, Sumitra and Kaikeyi and never said harsh words to them. • He greeted them whenever he met them, and bowed to them. 10

Krishna- The Lord with Two Mothers Lord Krishna had two Mothers: • Devaki – who gave birth to Him. • Yashodha – who raised him. Lord Krishna also respected many other women as his mothers – Queen Gandhari and Queen Kunti. Lord Karttikeya had 6 mothers who gave birth to him (the Krittikas) and was then raised by Mother Parvati. 11

Nature as our Mother Appreciate your Mother PART III 12

Earth and Rivers are our Mothers v Earth and Nature are called ‘Mother Earth’ and ‘Prakriti’ in Hindu philosophy Ma Ganga: Rivers are manifestations of feminine deities v Grains are manifestations of Devi Annapuurnaa v Mother Cow: symbol of motherly love, sacred animal “We are the sons of this earth, the earth is our Mother. ” Mother Atharvaveda 12. 1. 12 13

Our Country is our ‘Motherland’ v One’s country is usually termed as ‘Motherland’, in recognition of the fact that the land we live in nurtures us lovingly as our own mother. v “Janani janmabhumishcha, svargaadapi gariiyasi” (Sri Rama said that one’s mother and motherland are superior to Heaven) 14

Women Saints as Mothers RECOGNIZE THE LOVE, TALENT AND POWERS OF YOUR MOTHER PART IV 15

Shree Ma Anandamoyi (1896 -1982), born in Khera in what is now Bangladesh , was a Hindu woman mystic whose own husband became her devotee, and who was held in great reverence as a Mother even by Mahatma Gandhi. She traveled far and wide, preaching compassion and spirituality, and was instrumental in the setting up of many hospitals and other charitable institutions. Her Ashram in Bangladesh was recently destroyed by Islamists. 16

Ammachi www. ammachi. org • Mata Amritanandamayi, known as the ‘Hugging Saint’ – spreads divine love by embracing her millions of devotees and leaving a profound positive impact on them. • Born in a poor Harijan Hindu family of Kerala, she spreads the doctrine of Bhakti • Donated Rs 1 billion for Tsunami 2004 relief, offered to adopt all children orphaned in Kerala • Opened numerous charitable hospitals, free housing for poor, schools 17

Mata Nirmala Devi • Born to a Christian priest in India, she converted to Hindu Dharma • Discovers ‘Sahaja Yoga’, which can be practiced by all. • Travels tirelessly to preach Sahaja Yoga to people all nationalities and religions 18

Mother Mira Aditi A foreign disciple who became a Hindu Saint ‘The Mother’, was the spiritual companion or the first disciple of Shri Aurobindo, one of the most influential Hindu Sage of our times. She had visions about him even before she met him and became Self-realized/God-realized following the Integral Yoga he was developing/teaching). Originally from France, she followed him to India, where she spent the rest of her life providing spiritual leadership to Shri Aurobindo’s disciples. 19

Ma Sharada The Widow of a Saint becomes a Saint Sharada Devi (b. 1853), the wife of Shri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, a Hindu Saint who lived in the 19 th century. After Ramakrishna Paramahamsa passed away in 1886, she continued to guide her husband’s followers till her own death in 1920. Portraits of the two are worshipped together by followers of this Hindu saint even today, and she is considered a manifestation of the Divine Mother. 20

Mother as our Teacher LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER, LEARN FROM HER PART V 21

Mother Jijabai • Mother Jijabai inspired Shivaji to defeat evil ruler Aurangzeb and liberate India from his oppression and cruelty. • Emperor Shivaji is considered one of the greatest kings in the history of Hindus. 22

Queen Kunti – Mother of Pandavas • Whenever they were in trouble, she consoled them and gave them encouraging words. • She narrated the ‘Jaya Upakhyana’, the story of Queen Vidula and her son, to motivate them to fight the Kauravas. The Pandavas won the war. 23

Queens Suneeti and Madalasa • In the Markandeya Purana, Queen Madalasa sings spiritual hymns to her sons in their cradles and they become saints. Then she tells stories of chivalry to her fourth son and he becomes a great Emperor. • In the Vishnu Purana, Dhruva follows the advice of his mother, Queen Suneeti, and worships Lord Vishnu very sincerely. The Lord appears before him, impressed with his great devotion. “Only he is educated who has his mother, his father and his teacher to instruct him. ” (Brihadaranyaka Upanishad) 24

Saints as Sons of their Mothers BE PROUD OF YOUR MOTHER & SERVE HER PART VI 25

MOTHERS – THE MAKERS OF SAINTS AND KINGS • Many Hindu saints are known after their maothers: Sage Aitareya (son of Itara); Sage Satyakama Jabala (son of Jabala) • Many Hindu scholars are known after their mother’s names, and their father’s names are not known. E. g. , Dakshiputra Panini (son of Dakshi), the greatest grammarian of Sanskrit. • In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, dozens of Rishis are named only after their mothers, and not their fathers. • Hindu princes and Gods are often known after their mother: e. g. , Kaunteya (Arjuna); Devakiputra (Krishna). • When Saint Thirujnanasambandhar was an infant, he started crying of hunger outside a temple. Mother Parvati was filled with compassion and fed him some milk which made him full of wisdom and devotion for Lord Shiva. 26

“A son can be a bad son, but a mother can never be a bad mother. ” Adi Shankaracharya Changed the river course for his mother to take bath Came at her deathbed from a long distance to keep his promise 27

MOTHER THE MOST IMPORTANT PERSON IN YOUR LIFE PART VII 28

Mother in Hindu Tradition The Earthly manifestation of the Divine • • God is Himself/Herself worshipped as Mother of the Universe. When God is worshipped as a parent, he is first addressed as ‘Mata’ (Mother) and only then as a Father. Mother is considered more respectable than father or teacher in Hindu texts, she is the ‘highest Guru’ of man. In Samnyasa, all relations are considered severed, but the Samnyasin must still bow to his mother, and no one else. Most expensive shraadhas (after the death of parents) are specifically reserved for mother. In Hindu texts, funeral ceremonies for a sinful father can be abandoned, but for a sinful mother cannot be abandoned. Benefits for expectant mothers in Hindu texts: Exempt from ferry toll etc. When Hindu kings are coronated, their mothers are named before their fathers by the priests. When the child returns from a journey or from school, he should greet the mother before anyone else. 29

Hindu Scriptures on the Importance of our Mother “The Mother is our first teacher, she is the Highest Guru. ” (Gautama Dharmasutra 2. 57; Yajnavalkya Smriti 1. 33; Mahabharata 1. 196. 16 etc. ) “The Mother is a thousand times more venerable than the father. ” Manusmriti 2. 145 The graduating student is asked to first worship his mother as God, before father, teacher and guests. (Taittiriya Upanishad 1. 11. 2) When the Vedas address the parents of a child, the mother is mentioned first. (Rigveda 8. 4. 6) 30

“Worship your Mother Like God” Since God could not be present everywhere to take care of us, he gave us a mother. • • Worship and Respect your Mother. Listen to and Learn from your Mother. Love and Serve your Mother. Be proud of your Mother. Appreciate her hard work, love, talents and powers. Never neglect taking care of your mother. REMEMBER: “The Hand that rocks the cradle rules the world. ” 31

IN MEMORIAM: Mrs. Parul Bazaz • Please pray to God to grant peace to her soul. • Remember her family, especially her daughters Neena and Nisha, and husband Deepak in you thoughts and prayers. • Please sign the condolence card at the front desk. • Funeral Details: Cremation Society of Minnesota Brooklyn Park Chapel 7835 Brooklyn Blvd Brooklyn Park, 55445 763. 560. 3100 At 4 PM Today 32