Deivathin Kural Series - 142

Om Namah Sivaya.

Deivathin Kural # 142 of 28 Jan 2007.

To-day’s title is, “Ummachi,” occurring in pages 651 to 653, in Volume 1, of Deivathin Kural, Vanady Padippagam, 13 Deendayalu Street, T.Nagar, Chennai, India, (translated from Tamil to English, in this e-mail).
On getting up in the morning, everyone should think of God Narayana. Evening time we should meditate on Parameswara. Mahavishnu protects and sustains the world. In the morning, before starting one’s activities, we should think of him. The whole world take refuge in Parameswara. In the evening, when our activities come to an end, the seen world is covered in darkness, birds seek their nests, the cattle having grazed all over, return to their abode. At that time we should herd our thoughts roaming about, back to the heart, their source and meditate on Parameswara. Night is ‘Dosham’. Prior to that, the evening is ‘pradosham’. We should delve on Parameswara, in pradosham.
Easwara should always be thought of as being with Ambal. Easwara is Sivan. She is Sivaa. In Vedas, ‘Sri Rudram’, says, “ The Rudra with dreadful form, has a very pleasant and salubrious appearance too. That is known as Sivaa. Sivaa is the anti-dote ‘Aushadam’ for all the wordly ills. She is also the medicine for Rudra. If Rudraa is alive despite partaking the most poisonous ‘Alahaala Vish’, it is due to Her, the Mruta Sanjeevani Sivaa, the anti-dote. In ‘Soundarya Lahiri’, Acharyal, asks, “Mother! Is it not so, that due to the curative powers of Your Thaadanga, that despite swallowing ‘Aalahaala’, Parameswara, has remained unaffected?” It is such Sivaa, as being with Siva, that we should think. We cannot and should not think of one and forget the other. Sa + Amba + Siva = Saamabasiva. To think of them together is the custom, the tradition.
It is not only Vedas, that has ordained, that we should we should think of Siva and Sivaa together. The children of our nation, from time immemorial, have demanded us to do so! Children, who are not yet corrupt, who are as yet untouched by sin, their words are also, an inviolable order to us.
What is their Order to us? Children refer to God only as ‘Ummachi’. In the tradition of children’s vocabulary, there are some words, going on for thousands of years, without any change. In the case of elders, words can change. Over a period of time, the same word may have different connotation. Such is not the case with children. “ummachchi or ummachi” has the same meaning of indicating, ‘Swami’. I have been often referred as, ‘ummachi thatha’. I used to wonder, as to what could be the real meaning and origin of this word.
Once I had been to Thiruchi Malaikkottai. In the Temple there, amongst the, ‘Sri Padam Thaangigal’, (people specially meant to carry the palanquins), they referred to each other as ‘Ummachu’. On enquiry, I came to know that, they were from, Thirunallam, near Koneri Rajapuram. In the Temple there, the presiding deity is, “Uma Maheswaran”. The Deity is fondly referred as, ‘Ummachi’. Their they all, call each other as ‘ummachu’, or ‘ummachi’; which is the pet name for, ‘Uma Maheswara’. So I could understand that, for generations, children think of God, as a combined entity of, “Uma Devi and Maheswaraa”.
Children’s words have very high value. Anger and desire does not last long with them. They will lovingly hold anything for some time. In no time they will forget about it. They will get angry with someone. Within a few minutes, the anger will turn into love. They do not have deceit. They do not wish to cheat. That is why, Upanishads advice a devotee to approach God as a child. There is a Tamil Proverb, “Kuzhandiyum Deivamum Kondadum Idaththil”. Meaning that God and Children are there, where they are adored. We should abide by what the Upanishad and children demand of us. Every evening, meditate on ‘Easwara with Uma’ that is ‘ummachchi’. Namh Parvathee pathye Hara Hara Maha Deva!

Sambhomahadeva.