My mother-in-law is stunningly beautiful, very innocent, and a simple woman with an unconditional love for her family. Due to various family health issues, their visit to Portland is not really on the cards any time soon. I miss the time we spent during their last visits. Even though we visited them half a dozen times in the past ten years, it is during their two extended visits here that I really got to know her.
One of the many things I admire in her is how methodical she is with everything she does. Any dish she cooks, she cooks it exactly the same way every single time. Be it her raw banana pulusu (soup) or fried bitter gourd, ridge gourd cooked in milk or stuffed eggplant- they are prepared the same way every time to five star restaurant type precision and taste repeatability. She meticulously cleans the counters and cooking utensils immediately after cooking, regardless of how sick or tired she is. She keeps her closet very organized, always matches her blouse with her sari even when not entertaining guests or going out. She always sings the same song during her every prayer.
Those that know me would say that I could not be more diametrically opposite to my mother-in-law. I cannot make a dish the same way twice to save my life- my stuffed eggplant today will taste nothing like my last. I am too eager to eat after cooking to even think about cleanup. My closet is a dump. When getting ready for work, I throw on the first piece of clothing I find that does not obviously need a wash. However, I do sing my mother-in-law's song during special occasions, especially those involving Raaga. I think of the song as our special connection that transcends generations. I am very thankful for her teaching me, not just this song, but the beauty in how systematically she leads her life.
I thought of my mother-in-law as I realized that it is Guru Purnima, also known as Vyasa Purnima, today. In Sanskrit, Gu is ignorance or darkness, ru is the remover of darkness. It is the birthday of Veda Vyasa, the sage who divided vedic hymns into four vedas- Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva, and taught them to his disciples. Vyasa in Sanskrit means to edit or divide, and hence the sage's name, it is said. Today is also the day lord Shiva accepted the seven sages as his disciples, became the Adiguru (first teacher) and taught them the mechanics of conscious living and the seven forms of Yoga. Another significance attached to today is the belief that Budha shared his enlightenment with the first five of his disciples on this day.
Regardless of the many stories and beliefs that surround the day, I look at today as the day to celebrate anyone and everyone that led us to light.
I learnt from my mother that life cannot throw any challenges at me that I can't handle. My father continues to tell me how wonderful each new person he meets is. My husband teaches me teamwork and my kid teaches me persistence- and whether our teamwork and her persistence are mutually exclusive is up for debate.
There are numerous teachers that made indelible impressions and shaped my personality- Bhaktavatsalam sir that taught cursive English writing, Krishna sir that tutored me, the sir in Kurta and Panchi that taught Bhuvana Vijayam drama (I don't recall the name), Khan sir from JVS that said "Engineer बनना है बस्", my thesis adviser Prof. Palanki for convincing me to do Ph.D., my co-adviser Dr. Schreiber for stressing the importance of not fooling myself, and my many superiors and coworkers that continue to teach me many technical and life skills by just being the way they are.
Teacher Malavi took me in as a student along side her other 7 year old students and taught me basics of carnatic music at my young age of 35. I had goosebumps when teacher Smitha taught us Valachi Vacchi varnam recently, for it was a song I heard my grandmother sing when I was 6 or 7 years old. Sarada garu spent many evenings helping me shed inhibitions and sing solo on stage. Teacher Prashanthi transformed us from novices to performing a beautiful Kuchipudi piece. Shantha bhagini and Hitesh mahodaya continue to teach Sanskrit and inspire me in many ways beyond the language.
All of my family, from grandmother to mother-in-law, all my friends and acquaintances, local or otherwise, with a floodlight or with the brightness within, helped and continue to brighten my life. To each and everyone of you, I thank you for teaching me, on this Guru Purnima.
Like my favorite yoga teacher says, "The divine in me honors the divine in you. Namaste!"
Those that know me would say that I could not be more diametrically opposite to my mother-in-law. I cannot make a dish the same way twice to save my life- my stuffed eggplant today will taste nothing like my last. I am too eager to eat after cooking to even think about cleanup. My closet is a dump. When getting ready for work, I throw on the first piece of clothing I find that does not obviously need a wash. However, I do sing my mother-in-law's song during special occasions, especially those involving Raaga. I think of the song as our special connection that transcends generations. I am very thankful for her teaching me, not just this song, but the beauty in how systematically she leads her life.
I thought of my mother-in-law as I realized that it is Guru Purnima, also known as Vyasa Purnima, today. In Sanskrit, Gu is ignorance or darkness, ru is the remover of darkness. It is the birthday of Veda Vyasa, the sage who divided vedic hymns into four vedas- Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva, and taught them to his disciples. Vyasa in Sanskrit means to edit or divide, and hence the sage's name, it is said. Today is also the day lord Shiva accepted the seven sages as his disciples, became the Adiguru (first teacher) and taught them the mechanics of conscious living and the seven forms of Yoga. Another significance attached to today is the belief that Budha shared his enlightenment with the first five of his disciples on this day.
Regardless of the many stories and beliefs that surround the day, I look at today as the day to celebrate anyone and everyone that led us to light.
I learnt from my mother that life cannot throw any challenges at me that I can't handle. My father continues to tell me how wonderful each new person he meets is. My husband teaches me teamwork and my kid teaches me persistence- and whether our teamwork and her persistence are mutually exclusive is up for debate.
There are numerous teachers that made indelible impressions and shaped my personality- Bhaktavatsalam sir that taught cursive English writing, Krishna sir that tutored me, the sir in Kurta and Panchi that taught Bhuvana Vijayam drama (I don't recall the name), Khan sir from JVS that said "Engineer बनना है बस्", my thesis adviser Prof. Palanki for convincing me to do Ph.D., my co-adviser Dr. Schreiber for stressing the importance of not fooling myself, and my many superiors and coworkers that continue to teach me many technical and life skills by just being the way they are.
Teacher Malavi took me in as a student along side her other 7 year old students and taught me basics of carnatic music at my young age of 35. I had goosebumps when teacher Smitha taught us Valachi Vacchi varnam recently, for it was a song I heard my grandmother sing when I was 6 or 7 years old. Sarada garu spent many evenings helping me shed inhibitions and sing solo on stage. Teacher Prashanthi transformed us from novices to performing a beautiful Kuchipudi piece. Shantha bhagini and Hitesh mahodaya continue to teach Sanskrit and inspire me in many ways beyond the language.
All of my family, from grandmother to mother-in-law, all my friends and acquaintances, local or otherwise, with a floodlight or with the brightness within, helped and continue to brighten my life. To each and everyone of you, I thank you for teaching me, on this Guru Purnima.
Like my favorite yoga teacher says, "The divine in me honors the divine in you. Namaste!"
For the sake of completeness, here is the song my mother-in-law always sings. I sang this for Raaga on her birthday last week :):
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| Picture taken on Mothers Day, during my in-laws visit in 2013 |
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