Mother Earth

Earth Day, today, 22nd April 2018…

My morning began with wishes from friends, colleagues and students wishing me a Happy Earth Day and every message conveying a thought to preserve Her… Some say let’s conserve water, some say let’s plant trees, some talk abt environment and some pollution… Was pondering over all these thoughts that where have we, humans, led ourselves too?… What have we actually achieved by modernisation and technological innovations?… Let me clarify at the start itself that am not against technology or its innovations… At the same time we also to question ourself that hasn’t our attitude towards Earth and everything on Earth changed as well?… In our pursuit of technological innovations and creations aren’t we overlooking some important factors which play an important part in our life?…

Can we not with innovations inculcate a feeling of oneness with environment amongst ourselves )? Can we, Indians, not look around oursleves, our seers and seers abroad and learn from them? Cannot we go back to our roots without disturbing the pace of technological development? Cannot feelings, understandings run parallel with science?

The answer to all these questions is a big YES…

Our civilisation and culture believes in the four fold path

1. Reverence for mankind

2. Reverence for Animals and Plants

3. Reverence for the creation

4. Reverence for the Creator…

And all these four paths are not independent but they overlap and there can be no thin line differentiating them…

Today wanna dwell upon it… We will take an example of Reverence for Earth (creation) as it will be relevant as of date…

Our seers have said and we all too repeat the same shlok every morning

समुद्रवसने देवि पर्वतस्तनमंडले।

विष्णुपत्नि नमस्तुभ्यम् पादस्पर्शं क्षमस्व मे।।

(Samudra vasane devi, parvat-stan- mandale,

Vishnu-patni namastubhyam, paad sparsham kshamasve me)…

Literal translation :

I bow to Vishnu-patni (Laxmi, the Goddess of wealth) who drapes the oceans around Herself and the one adorned with mountain breasts, I ask for forgiveness while stepping on you…

If we understand this Shlok with the meaning imbibed in it, then we all may find a solution to the problems that Mother Earth is facing today…

(Contd on 23rd April…)

Just imagine the extent of understanding and the attitude that one needs to have towards Mother Earth…

It says that Mother is draped with oceans… Isn’t it so? From the hot ball of fire to the ice age and then due to moderation of temperatures ice converting to water… 70% of Mother Earth is covered with water… Isn’t the largest part of civilised and cultured humanity covers atleast 70% of itself with clothes (it may vary)?… At the same time the water, however salty it may be, is the source of drinking water for mankind… So Mother Earth takes care of Her children by providing them water…

In the same breath, we talk about Her having mountain as Her breasts… (I always wondered why talk about things in such a way, and especially when one learns the shlok at a very young age)… Today I feel it’s the best metaphor that can be used for Her… The rain water accumulates in Her bosom and flows in the form of rivers to enrich the soil along the path they flow… it is She who let’s the forests and the jungles and our farms thrive on Herself… She provides the nutrients to humankind… So She is accurately described…

And lastly Mother Earth is called Vishnu-patni… She is Laxmi, the consort of Vishnu… Earth is so full of diverse elements and minerals that these resources have played an important part in the development of man… And till today She is providing him with it… Isn’t all this our wealth?… And who can take care of the wealth… The operator Himself… In the Vedic trinity He is called the Vishnu, the one who operates and takes care… one who takes care needs different types of wealth… So the description as Vishnu-patni…

But today we have started exploiting Mother Earth in a way which is harming the future of Humankind… People want to and are trying to find ways to make Her beautiful again… Some say that we need to take care as She is going to be of great help to us…. Some say that we need to think about our future generations… But these are reasons and logic coming out of our selfish nature… I am personally not against it nor can anyone be as even if with selfish motives we are going to take care of Her which is not bad… But it isn’t the right path, as whenever we will find alternative paths then we will again be indifferent towards Her…

So the best part can be that we revere Her as our Mother… No son defiles his mother… Rather he takes care… A mother is someone who understands the needs of Her sons and provides them, as Mother Earth has been doing it from the advent of Mankind… Our seers, all great people have always advocated this right path…

It may sound a little unscientific to some but at the same time our history shows us that whenever we have the outlook of reverence for the creation, it has helped in no uncertain terms by bringing man closer to man, man closer to nature and man closer to the Creator…

So, on this Earth Day, let us all pledge to make our Mother pure as ever… To take care of Her as our own Mother… And lead a life of which She would be proud of…

Happy Earth Day, again…