MatruPitruVandanam celebrates the divinity of mother and father, and therefore the divinity of human beings. I feel its a concept of finding divinity from ‘within” by respecting the divinity of parents.
Some years ago, I had a conversation with one of my nephews. Let us call him A, of the millennial generation as people call them or the gadget generation as I call them. Conversation was about faith and rituals. It went like this (with my perception of his expressions in brackets) :
A: I do not believe in all the rituals and prayers. What is the benefit? This whole belief in God that we never see is absurd to me.
Me: Hm you may be right. (Surprised, he thought I was going to lecture him).
After a while.
Me: Let me ask you a question (“Oh Oh here it goes”). Is there any person or thing that you sort of look up to, trust, love, listen to?
A: My mum (no hesitation).
Me: Why?
A: Because (hesitant), because well she took care of me, she loves me, raised me. I don’t know .. just that she is there for me.
Me: So would you trust her? believe everything that she tells you?
A: Yes
Me: Even if she says that you are not her son, that she picked you up at the hospital?
(Staring wide eyed, but speechless)
A: Well, if she says so. But she still loves me
Me: And so you would still love and trust her?
A: yes
Me: Then is she not like a God for you?
(Head bowed, thinking).
A: I don’t know. Can we really call mum as God? I guess ya, she is like a God for me.
Me: The function of God is to love, your mum loves you. You love and trust her. So she is your God. Simple is it not?
(Confused and enlightened at the same time).
A: And that is allowed?
Me: Yes. Let me tell you that in the ancient Vedic culture of India, there is a great saying:
Maatru Devo Bhava – Be the one to whom a Mother is as God (or simply Honour your Mother as God).
Pitru Devo Bhava – Be the one to whom a Father is as God (or Honour your Father as God)
Aacharya Devo Bhava — Be the one to whom the teacher is God (Honour your teacher as God).
Atithi Devo Bhava — Be the one to whom a Guest is as God. (Honour the guest as a God).
A: Sounds good. So God is right here with us. With me everyday, because I see my Mum everyday.
Me: Yes
A: (frowning, thinking hard, but I had the last word, of course!).
A was married in a traditional Hindu ceremony, as per the wish of his parents. He now has a beautiful daughter. Every morning A’s mother brings her granddaughter to see the photo of A’s grandparents (i.e. my parents) to get blessings from them. A understands this ritual now.
This conversation visited my mind when I participated in the MatruPitruVandanam ceremony, on 17 December 2017 in Bali. Organised by the Dvipantara Samskritam Foundation, it aims to reintroduce the age old Vedic tradition of respecting and thanking parents and elders. MatruPitruvandanam celebrates the divinity of mother and father, and therefore the divinity of human beings. I feel it is a concept of finding divinity from ‘within” by respecting the divinity of parents.
About 30 families in Bali participated in the MatruPitruVandanam ceremony. It involves children washing the feet of their parents, showering them with flowers, offering them fruits and then prostrating with their head touching the feet of the parents. Parents then bless their children with “happiness (sukham), auspiciousness (subham) and completeness (Purnam)”. The following pictures show the joy of both children and parents. (Photographs by Dvipantara Samskritam Team).
Children and parents prepare for the MatruPitruVandanam in Bali December 17, 2017
washing the feet of parents
Offering flowers
Prayers to and for parents
Parents blessing children
and the love
MatruPitru Vandanam was initiated in India and is celebrated in many parts of the world. In Bali, this was organized by an excellent team of volunteers from the the Dvipantara Samskritam, making it a commendable event to participate in. My Sanskrit teacher suggested that we team up as maatah -putraah (mother and son). It was a precious experience that taught me humility, affection, respect and of course divinity.
Smiles and togetherness
Through this ceremony, I am blessed with new family members and the new title of maatah (mother). For a while I could feel the blessings of my late parents and my elders. And I am happy to pass on those blessings to my new family members. As we say in Sanskrit Vasudhaiva Kutumbhakam – The whole Earth (includes all beings) is our Family.
The Dvipantara Family — The whole earth is our family
