See also:
Homage to Easwaramma -
The Chosen Mother |
Easwaramma Day
In 1972, Bhagavan Baba conducted a month
long Summer Course on Indian Culture and Spirituality at
Brindavan, Whitefield. 800 boys and girls selected from colleges
situated in all the various states of India were chosen for the
camp.
When Easwaramma, Bhagavan Baba's mother
came to know about it, she desired to be there. She took up
residence on the ground floor of Swami's bungalow with other
families.
On the eleventh or twelfth day of the camp,
the Mother had an experience that reaffirmed her faith that
Swami was God. She had high fever for four days and Swami
visited her enquiring about her health. When she looked up she
was amazed to see "Sri Rama with Kireetam and Kodandam" (Crown
and Bow). She raised her folded hands and struggled to sit up.
But in a few moments He became Swami again. He gave her Vibhuti
Prasad and assured her of recovery from her fever. She shared
the thrill of this encounter with an intimate friend.
This divine revelation proved to be the
prelude for her merger with the Paranjyoti (Supreme Flame). It
was the 6th May 1972 about 7 in the morning. Students had
already completed Nagar Sankeertan; Swami had given them a
Darshan at its close. Then He went for His bath. Meanwhile,
Easwaramma had finished her bath. She drank her coffee and was
seated on the inner verandah. All of a sudden proceeding to the
bathroom, she cried out, "Swami, Swami, Swami!" Bhagavan
responded, "Coming, coming." Within that period she breathed her
last. That was an authentic consummation, a yearning at the
final moment for God. It was the sign of her holy purity. She
was a model mother, chosen by God to be His mother.
Easwaramma was a poor, middle-aged,
tender-hearted, pious, illiterate rural housewife. When she was
invested with the onerous responsibility to mother God Himself,
she rose to the occasion and with steadfast courage enacted the
role and encountered the challenges. She experienced all the
grief and joy, hope and despair, anxiety and assurance of the
mothers (Kausalya and Yasoda) of previous incarnations Rama and
Krishna.
Easwaramma, like every other Hindu
housewife of her region was conversant with the Telegu ballads,
legends, folk songs and tales that have gathered around Rama and
Krishna. But, it took years of intimate observation and hundreds
of inexplicable incidents and intimations to convince her that
the child she had fondled had come to prove the Bhagavatha and
the Ramayana as true.
As mother of the Avatar she was venerated
by all the devotees. But, she herself was an earnest sadhak
guided by her Divine son through the tangles of life. She
expanded in her awareness beyond the barricades of tradition and
taboo, custom and caste of her people. She rose to be the
universal mother of the fast multiplying multi-lingual,
multi-racial, multi-credal, global family of Sai.
May 6 for Sai devotees in Easwaramma
Commemoration Day. On this auspicious occasion Bhagavan Baba
visits His mother's Samadhi and makes obeisance to her memory,
to set a model for others. In the evening He gives a discourse
highlighting the glory of motherhood. He reminds people of the
roles of Madalasa, Iswar Chandra's Mother, Putlibai and others
in shaping the destiny of their children. Mothers, Bhagavan says,
have the unique privilege of instilling the first seeds of
spirituality and human values in their children. Bhagavan lays
equal emphasis on children revering their mothers. He reminds
them of Rama's words, "Mother and motherland are greater than
Heaven itself", and "Parents are the visible embodiments of God."
(Based on Easwaramma: The Chosen Mother by
N. Kasturi)
From: Spiritual Impressions,
Puttaparthi, Mar-Apr. 1997, pag. 22-23
Published by Sai Towers Publishing:
http://www.saitowers.com/
Easwaramma, the Chosen
Mother with Sri Sathya Sai Baba |
