MOTHER
(This is a truly BEAUTIFUL piece.
Please read this at a slow pace,
digesting every word and in leisure....
Do not hurry.....this is a treasure...

For those lucky to still be blessed with your Mom,
this is beautiful.
For those of us who aren't,
this is even more beautiful.
For those who are moms,
you'll love this.)

Here it goes......


The young mother set her foot
on the path of life.
'Is this the long way?' she asked.
And the guide said: 'Yes,
and the way is hard
And you will be old before
you reach the end of it..
But the end will be better
than the beginning.'

But the young mother was happy,
and she would not believe
that anything could be better
than these years.
So she played with her children,
and gathered flowers for them along the way,
and bathed them in the clear streams;
and the sun shone on them,
and the young Mother cried,
'Nothing will ever be lovelier than this.'

Then the night came,
and the storm, and the path was dark,

and the children shook with fear and cold,
and the mother drew them close
and covered them with her mantle,
and the children said,
'Mother, we are not afraid,
for you are near, and no harm can come.'

And the morning came,
and there was a hill ahead,
and the children climbed and grew weary,
and the mother was weary.
But at all times she said to the children,
'A little patience and we are there.'
So the children climbed,
and when they reached the top they said,
'Mother, we would not have done it without you.'

And the mother, when she lay down at night
looked up at the stars and said,
'This is a better day than the last,
for my children have learned fortitude
in the face of hardness.
Yesterday I gave them courage.
Today, I've given them strength.'

And the next day came strange clouds
which darkened the earth,
clouds of war and hate and evil,
and the children groped and stumbled,
and the mother said:
' Look up. Lift your eyes to the light.'
And the children looked and saw
above the clouds an everlasting glory,
and it guided them beyond the darkness.
And that night the Mother said,
'This is the best day of all,
for I have shown my children God.'

And the days went on,
and the weeks and the months and the years,
and the mother grew old
and she was little and bent.
But her children were tall and strong,
and walked with courage.
And when the way was rough,
they lifted her, for she was as light as a feather;
and at last they came to a hill,
and beyond they could see a shining road
and golden gates flung wide.
And mother said,
'I have reached the end of my journey..
And now I know the end
is better than the beginning,
for my children can walk alone,
and their children after them.'

And the children said,
'You will always walk with us, Mother,
even when you have gone through the gates.'
And they stood and watched her
as she went on alone,
and the gates closed after her.
And they said:
'We cannot see her but she is with us still.
A Mother like ours is more than a memory.
She is a living presence.......'

Your Mother is always with you....
She's the whisper of the leaves
as you walk down the street;
she's the smell of bleach
in your freshly laundered socks;
she's the cool hand on your brow
when you're not well.
Your Mother lives inside your laughter.
And she's crystallized in every tear drop.
She's the place you came from,
your first home;
and she's the map you follow
with every step you take.
She's your first love and your first heartbreak,
and nothing on earth can separate you.

Not time, not space... not even death!

(Source: http://www.vepachedu.org/lingpurana.htm)


Vamana Purana

When naked Lord Shiva was wandering in the Daruvanam forest, the wives of sages lost self control for Lord Shiva was the most beautiful and attractive man and they at once were seduced by the Lord. The sages who failed to recognize the Lord thought he was an ordinary immortal and cursed him: May the Lingam (penis) of this man fall to the ground! That instant the Lingam of Shiva fell to the ground, and the God immediately disappeared. The Lingam, as it fell, penetrated through the earth to the lower worlds and increased in height until it towered above the heavens. The earth quaked, all things movable and immovable agitated. Brahma and Vishnu then decided to find the ends of the great Lingam, while Vishnu mounted on Garuda descended down and Brahma on his lotus ascended the heavens. They returned to where they started unable to find the ends of the great Lingam, and with great reverence and praise they requested Lord Shiva to resume his Lingam. Lord Shiva thus propitiated appeared and said: If gods and men will worship, I will resume it. To this proposal Brahma and Vishnu and all other Gods agreed and since then the Lingam is worshipped by all.


Shiva Purana

On falling in consequence of the sages’ curse, the Lingam became like fire, and caused a conflagration wherever it penetrated; the three worlds were distressed, and as neither Gods nor sages could find rest, they hastened for protection to Brahma. Having heard them relate all that happened, Brahma replied, “After having committed knowingly a reprehensible act, why say that it was done unknowingly? Every one shall reap the fruit of his good or bad actions, and the Lingam therefore shall not cease to distress the worlds until the God resumes it. Propitiate by adoration the mountain-born Goddess, and she will assume the form of Yoni (vagina) and receive the Lingam, by which means only it can be rendered innocuous.

After obtaining the consent of Parvati, form a vessel of eight kinds of leaves, place in it boiled rice and sacred plants, having it filled with holy water, consecrate with proper prayers and invocations, and with water repeating at the same time suitable prayers, sprinkle the Lingam. After Parvati receives the Lingam in her Yoni, you erect and consecrate the form of Lingam in the Yoni. By worshipping it with offerings of flowers, perfumes and such things, by kindling lamps before it, and by singing music propitiate Maheswara and he will forgive you.” As per Brahma’s instructions, the Gods and sages sought the assistance of Parvati. Parvati received in her Yoni the Lingam and appeased its consuming fire. In commemoration of this event the worship of Lingam was instituted.


Lainga Purana

Brahma said to angels, “When I sprang into existence, I beheld the mighty Narayana reposing on the abyss of waters, and, being under the influence of delusion, awakened him with my hand and addressed him: ‘who art thou that thus slumberest on this terrible ocean?’ Hari awoke dispelling sleep from his lotus eyes, looked upon me and then arising said, ‘Welcome, welcome O Pitamaha, my dear son!’ On hearing the first of the Gods speak, I confined within the bonds of the quality of impurity, replied: why dost thou say, my dear son? For know me to be eternal god, the universal spirit, the creator, the preserver and the destroyer of the three worlds.’ He immediately answered, “Hear the truth, Oh four faced! And learn that it is I who am the creator, the preserver, and the destroyer, how canst thou forget Narayana the self-existent and eternal Being?’ hence arose terrible combat amidst the waters of the deluge, where to appease the contest and recall us to our senses, appeared a Lingam blazing like a thousand suns. Bewildered by its radiant beams, Hari thus said to me lost in amazement, ‘I will proceed downwards in order to ascertain the termination of this wondrous column of fire, do thou, O lord, proceed upwards and seek for its top.’ Having thus spoken he assumed the form of a boar, and I that of a swan, and we both proceeded in our search for four thousand years, but being unable to ascertain its termination, we then returned back wearied and disappointed. Thus still under influence of delusion, we prostrated ourselves before the Lingam, and were reflecting on what it could be. Then we heard a voice saying Om, Om, Om- and shortly after appeared Shiva in the midst of that column of fire. In commemoration of this event therefore was the worship of Lingam instituted.”


Scanda Purana and Visva-Sara-Prakasha

One day naked Mahadeva with a club in his hand chanced to pass by near a place where several sages were performing their devotions. Mahadeva laughed at them, insulted and provoked them with gestures and signs. The sages cursed him and his Lingam or Phallus fell to the ground. Mahadeva in this state of mutilation traveled over the world bewailing his misfortune and his consort Parvati ran after him singing mournful songs. (In Greek mythology this is called wanderings of Demeter and lamentations of Bacchus) The world thus stopped procreation and came to a standstill. Gods and men searched for the sacred Lingam and found it grown to an immense size. They cut it with hatchets into thirty-one pieces that became perfect Lingams. The Gods left twenty-one on earth and took nine to heaven and removed one to netherworld.

Shaivites insits that Kaba is one of the twenty-one places on earth. Arabian authors opine that Lingas were worshipped all over Arabia. According to many sources the first phallus was erected on the banks of Euphrates and was known as Balef-Wara-Linga.

Know thy religion.......

Shivalinga (Shivling) explained......
(http://www.gurjari.net/ico/Mystica/html/shivalinga.htm)

Linga means "sign, mark, or symbol". It also refers to a digging implement or plough. Since the plough readies the earth for insemination, the word linga is also applied to the phallus, particularly as the phallic emblem of Shiva. Though Shiva is considered the destroyer (Trimurti) according to Hindu belief, creation (Srishti) follows destruction. The linga is therefore associated with the sexual union of Shiva and Parvati, which results in creation. It is a symbol of the procreative power of the universe.
Linga is derived from the Sanskrit word lingam, which comes from li meaning, "to dissolve" and gam "to move on". This refers to the belief that one appears as a being in the world and then dissolves back into the universe.

A Shivalinga is phallus-shaped and fixed on a base, which is shaped like a yoni. The structure symbolises the supreme creative energy. It is usually made of stone but can also be of wood, metal, crystal, and soapstone.

There are various explanations as to why the linga represents Shiva. According to the Vamana Purana, after Sati's death, Shiva went to mourn in the forest. Seeing the virile god, the wives of the sages living in the forest were enamoured and followed Shiva around. Enraged, the sages cursed Shiva, causing his phallus to fall off. The moment it touched the ground, his phallus started growing. Soon the earth, unable to support its weight, began quivering. When Brahma and Vishnu realised why the earth was shaking, they requested Shiva to take back his phallus. Shiva consented to do so on the condition that the sages worshipped his phallus. He pronounced that nothing would be impossible for one who worshipped the Shivalinga.


The Linga Purana says that Brahma and Vishnu were once arguing over who was the supreme being. Suddenly, there appeared Sivalinga before them a huge column of fire. Both of them decided to find one end each. Whoever returned first would be acknowledged as supreme. Vishnu assumed the form of a boar and dug into the earth. Brahma, in the form of a swan, flew upwards. They searched for days but in vain. Then Shiva appeared in the fiery column. Brahma and Vishnu realised their mistake and acknowledged Shiva as the Supreme Being. The Shivalinga represents that column of fire Jyotirlinga

The phallic cult appears to have been prevalent in India since the Indus Valley Civilisation (c. 3000 BC - 700 BC). Emblems resembling the linga and yoni have been discovered in excavations of ancient cities. Although the Vedas are contemptuous of the linga because of its association with the phallus, later literature like the Puranas and tantric texts laud phallic worship. According to these texts, Brahma, Vishnu and other gods live at the site where Shiva exists in the form of a linga. The Vamana Purana says that during Chaturmasya, Shiva sleeps in all lingas. Therefore, praying at any linga during this time is considered especially auspicious. It is believed that the land within 100 cubits (about 160 ft) of a linga is very sacred and called Shivasthala.

There are approximately 30 million lingas in temples and shrines all over India. Most of them are named after the place where they are located or after the person who established them there. Lingas fall into three categories. The first are the Anadi or Svayambhu, or self-generated lingas. They are believed to be the most sacred and are said to have fallen from heaven. Next are the Sithavara, or fixed lingas. These are crafted and then, after an initiation ceremony done according to Puranic rites, installed at a sacred location. It is believed that once a linga is installed, it should never be moved as that would result in a calamity. The third category of lingas are the Jangam, or movable lingas. These are the miniature lingas, which are made of stone, clay, metal, or other material. They are worn as amulets and necklaces, or worshipped in the homes of Shiva's devotees.

The actual worship of the Shivalinga begins with bathing it, first with water mixed with earth, and then with water mixed with the Panchagavya. The linga is then smeared with sandalwood paste. Next, flowers and leaves are offered especially bel leaves. Next comes the arati, followed by the devotee's prayer. Shiva is believed to be very hot-tempered: bathing the linga and applying sandalwood paste are believed to soothe him.