Prof. Anil Kumar: Swami! Maybe due to the impact of the Age of Kali, we don’t find in these days, any understanding among the members of a family. Instead, we find differences in many families, even conflicts, complexes, competitions; and sometimes matters become so bad as to drag a family to the courts. Please suggest a way out of this sad plight, Swami!

Bhagavan: In this world though diversity is apparent, there is an inherent unity. Multiplicity may be patent; but the underlying unity is latent. The whole of nature shows both these aspects.

Take the earth; it is not the same throughout. There are hills, mountains, and valleys. However, in our experience we clearly visualise unity. Are the five fingers of the same hand identical? No. Similarly, the members of one and the same family are not alike or uniform. They are not stereotypes. All the same, there cannot be any valid reason for the absence of fraternity, unity, and love among the members of the family.

A good example from our epics maybe cited in this context. You analyse ‘the family our Lord Siva’. Siva has Ganga water over his head, and fire on his forehead between the two eyes. He is, therefore, Trinetra or ‘the three-eyed’ God’. ‘Water’ and ‘Fire’ are also opposed to each other in their nature and don’t coexist. Siva is pannagadhara, nagabhusana for He has venomous serpents around His neck.

The vehicle of his younger son, Lord Subrahmanya, is a peacock. Snakes and peacocks are enemies. The vehicle of Goddess Parvati, consort of Siva, is a lion; she is simhavahini. The very face of Siva’s elder son is that of an elephant. Ganesh is called Gajanana for this reason. An elephant can’t even dream of the sight of a lion. Parvati has all the jewels, but Her Lord, Siva is digambara, with minimum attire, and bhasma bhusitanga that is, vibhuti smeared all over His body. Though Siva’s family is full of opposites and contradictions, there is integration, coordination, harmony and unity.

Similarly, in your families, the members may differ from each other, yet you should be able to live in perfect harmony like Siva’s family. This is the lesson that over the ages Lord Siva has been teaching the world.

Source: ‘Satyopanisad’ by Prof. Anil Kumar Kamaraju