Oh! Mother, how far THY stride,
How distant is your sojourn?
Does it stretch the reach of human sight?
Or extend across the limitless cosmos?
Do you cover this earth in your steps?
Or soar up to the blue ethereal skies?
Verily transcend even the unblinking eyes
Move beyond the distant horizon
Even farther than all that is seen.
AMMA you permeate and surpass
All these seen living species
Truly witness the cosmic rhythm,
That includes creation, destruction and sustenance.
Truly move beyond the endless time,
That knows not what it unfolds,
As the cosmic process forms THY dispensation.
THY moves, strides are beyond the Realms of
our possibility or even
Too often those outreach our known capability.
Truly THY motherly heart reigns over
This entire order, containing the same
In its abysmal depths that are unfathomed.
THY doings, moves, strides are quite out of
Our domains of understanding, even
In their far reaching imaginary realms,
Verily beyond perception in whatever mode
Conceivable; Oh! AMMA we only bow THEE
In our limited existence that is verily confined.
To dwell on the reality of human life it is far too confined and limited to his lifetime. Obviously, he enters this mortal world by birth and exits by death with little choice. In between these two restricting points that are inviolable, he is bogged down with many a bother and eking out his livelihood hardly concerned of little else. Thus passes off into oblivion. Very likely is sunk in the repetitious cycle of human existence that is beyond his control. Likely this is the reason AMMA observed “Oblivion is Death”. To paraphrase the same in AMMA’S inimitable vernacular reads “Marupe Maranam”.
In this song brother Raju touches upon these aspects. In the course of his musings he sings on AMMA to expound these aspects and HER larger, boundless, mega, infinite presence.
As mentioned above, while the individual life span is limited, the divine manifestation of AMMA is timeless, ageless and eternal. Even though or despite the fact that the devotee children, quite a few of them cognize HER by the unique physical form of AMMA. Here it is to be construed that the physical entity that is time bound is only a transient sheath that envelops eternal cosmic power that has no limits and is infinite.
Granting this contemplating on such divine form and trying to dilate on its moves is a worthy effort, an exercise that is revealing of other meaningful aspects to the lesser mortal. This is the premise or the onus of this song penned by brother Raju triggered off by one of the incidents in his routine way to work.
While being in physical form, AMMA too strode on this earth and cast HER benevolent benign looks on the earth and its denizens. If so, how far or yonder HER journey stretches? Is it coincidental with HER physical sight which appears normal for us for all purposes apparently? Presumably does it coexist and match this endless cosmic process?
Viewing it in another mode, HER sight in the divine perspective has no edges or limits. Does HER stride move without limits accordingly? Notwithstanding the fact the devotee children are necessarily limited in their time spans of their lifetimes, as also physically limited vision. These are rhetorical questions raised in the song that beget no verbal answer but the unmistakable truths to be pondered over by one and all.
Stepping down to a more mundane, tangible plane that is easily intelligible to all of us, does AMMA’S stride cover this entire earth, as SHE is perceived the personification of earth in HER aspect of peerless patience, stoic forbearance of all that emanates on this earth and in HER presence regardless of choice.
Could it be that because of HER exalted SELF that includes all the entire existence and the whole creation soar up to the vast blue, ethereal skies that have no dimension, affording a limitless, infinite opportunity (space) for the ceaseless process of creation to find expression?
Oftentimes the human sight stretches up to the distant horizon, though it may seem a vacant void. Yet we witness all the forms, shapes and entities before the horizon in varying detail as the sight extends in the ambience. Quite likely AMMA looks far beyond the horizon. HER sight transcends all these shapes and forms, verily resting on the ageless truth or the reality that conditions and dictates all this physical expression. Let us say sets the tune orchestrating the whole physical universe that is visible. Sounds paradoxical yet truly the invisible subtle force conditions the visible existence without exception, though not perceptible ordinarily.
Having said this, this world is full of living forms, species of different kinds and varying shapes with widely divergent living modes. AMMA being the MOTHER OF ALL; to elaborate, being the mother of all that exists, both animate and the inanimate necessarily covers the entire existence. Mention needs to be made here that in AMMA’S reckoning there is nothing inert in this order.
Because of HER all inclusive, all pervasive, personified, embodied MOTHERHOOD, AMMA permeates all the living species and the entire existence. Also, SHE being the personified cosmic force, manifested in a cognizable human form, not merely permeates the species but transcends and over reaches all of those. Thus SHE conditions their living and existence.
All this mega process is tuned or given vent in the wake of endless time. AMMA logically coexists with the incessant time, which knows not what it unfolds, except moving on relentlessly sweeping across the eons, in which the order changes endlessly. This mega change across the infinite passage of time is again AMMA’S unique dispensation while the unfolding time is a mute witness. Such is the cosmic dimension, role of AMMA.
The unfolding of the order over the ages and across the species obviously involves the triple aspects of creation, sustenance and destruction. Thus the cosmic process moves on with life renewing itself constantly, giving room for new beings and dispensing with the old forms. These cosmic aspects are doubtless within the boundless domain of AMMA, being the personified boundless motherhood for all that exists and that is ever here and hereafter.
In such a magnificent seamless role, covering this entire universe, AMMA’S steps, strides are far beyond the realms of human possibility and even every known capability. HER script and authorship of this cosmos, creation rests truly beyond our realms.
Granting such a unique dimension, one cannot but be part of HER universal, all pervasive motherhood, that envelops all beings, the entire existence and the given order at any point of time. Though beyond our understanding, or even beyond our sight and sensibility, each one of us is but a tiny part and particle of such an unfathomed abyss of AMMA’S motherhood, which brings forth everything or being into this visible world without exception.
Whether or not seen, whether or not cognizable, whether or not visible, we bow such magnificent motherhood that includes all, sways all and conditions all in AMMA’S timeless stride. In the process be blessed with all auspices and beget AMMA’S protective vigil for all times in our limited individual lifetimes.
(Adapted from ‘ANUBHAVA SARAM’ authored by Brother Mannava Butchi Raju Sarma, Song No. 42 “Entha Dooramamma Ee Payanam” Page No.45. Also under grateful acknowledgement to “Lo Choopu ” presented by Brothers A.V.R. Subrahmanyam and Ravuri Prasad)