Volume 15 - Issue 05
May 2017
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Posted on: May 30, 2017

RADIO SAI THEMATIC QUIZ - 10

Right answer on your 1st attempt
3 Points
Right answer on your 2nd attempt
2 Points
Right answer on your 3rd attempt
1 Point

Quizzes have been a part of Radio Sai journal's offering for over 10 years now. Initially it was Multi-faith quiz and soon we had quizzes based on Bhagawan’s discourses, and later, on His writings. In July 2016 we began this new series wherein we have quizzes on specific themes. The theme for the present one is 'Lotus feet of the Lord'.

Quiz 01 || Quiz 02 || Quiz 03|| Quiz 05 || Quiz 06 || Quiz 07 || Quiz 08 || Quiz 09

Noble Mothers

Swami says: The term Stree should not be treated lightly. The Bhagavad Geeta lists seven attributes to the feminine principle - Fame, Wealth, Speech, Wisdom, Intelligence, Fortitude and Determination. The Mother principle, which embodies these seven potencies, is highly sacred.

Let's retrace our steps back into history and lift the veil on the noble mothers of some illustrious offspring. Let’s try to identify each of these remarkable ladies in a “who am I” type quiz. The clues , except for one, reveal the identity of their more famous progeny.



The Power of Purity

Q1. Swami has often quoted me as an example for the power of chastity and purity.

Once the three Gods, Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara, put me, the wife of a revered sage, to a severe test. When I succeeded in the test, I was blessed by their boon with a son who was the Trinity Incarnate.

Who am I?


WOULD YOU LIKE A CLUE?


 

DIVIDER


Nurturing the Future

Q2. When our fourth child was growing in my womb, my husband, a demon, left in order to propitiate Lord Brahma for boons. When the Devas attacked the kingdom, I was rescued by Sage Narada and stayed in his ashram. The growing foetus in my womb absorbed the teachings of the great Sage even as I listened to his discourses on Lord Narayana.

My husband, on his return after securing boons from Lord Brahma, took our newly born son and me back to the palace from the hermitage, and tried unsuccessfully to make our son adore him and despise Lord Narayana, and subjected him to several ordeals.

My son later grew to be known as one of the greatest devotees of the Lord as well as a great ruler.

Who am I?


WOULD YOU LIKE A CLUE?


 

DIVIDER


Mother, the First Teacher of Human Values

Q3. Swami describes me as a strict disciplinarian and pure-hearted.

I used to observe a vow (kokila vrata) wherein I would have my breakfast each day only after hearing the singing of a cuckoo. The events that unfolded after my young son mimicked the cuckoo’s song to enable me to break a very long fast one day were what instilled in him the first seeds of a strong determination to never waver from the truth.

This resolve was what would eventually shape a person who would record one of the most glorious victories of human values in the pages of history.

I am the mother of a son who became great because he was truly good.


Who am I?


WOULD YOU LIKE A CLUE?


 

DIVIDER

Q4. As the wife of a humble carpenter, we were living a life of great poverty. An excellent seamstress, I used to sew the clothes for my family. My eight-year-old son, who attended a school in the nearby village with children from well-to-do families, was ashamed of his old and ragged clothes. When he broke down in tears one day, I consoled him and taught him that self-confidence was his greatest wealth. This quality was one that propelled him through the many ups and downs of his historic career and marked him out as one of the greatest leaders of our country.

Who am I?


WOULD YOU LIKE A CLUE?



 

DIVIDER

The Mother and the Ideal of Service?

Q5: I am the least famous of my husband’s three wives. Not much is known about me. But Swami has always praised me and held me up as an example of courage and selflessness because of the manner in which I have encouraged my twin sons to serve their elder brothers. One of them served the eldest brother in the forest and the other served the second brother in the administration of the kingdom.

Who am I?


WOULD YOU LIKE A CLUE?



DIVIDER


Q6. My son has been an ideal son, a role model for all sons. He fulfilled all my desires, in ways that were grander than my wish. I placed before him three requests, that of free education, healthcare and water supply to our village. What he achieved was far beyond my wildest dreams.

He has said that when my satya sankalpa merged with His nitya sankalpa, mighty tasks were accomplished.


Who am I?


WOULD YOU LIKE A CLUE?


 

DIVIDER


Mother and Bhakti

Q7. When my daughter, as a five year old child, kept bothering me about who her husband was, I pointed out the Giridhar murti in the shrine room, and said “that is your husband, go!”

My light-hearted comment made such an impact on her young mind that from then till the end of her life, she remained devoted to Giridhar and reached pinnacles of devotion very rarely scaled. A princess mendicant, she sacrificed her all for her Giridhar Gopal, and ultimately merged in Him.

Who am I?


WOULD YOU LIKE A CLUE?


 

DIVIDER

 

Mother and Jnana

Q8. Swami has often spoke highly of how I inculcated in my children the great quality of vairagya (detachment) even from their infancy. As He recounts, I used to sing a lullaby thus to my sons:

Placing you in the cradle of Omkara
On the bed of the great saying 'Tat tvam asi'
Swinging to the music of Awareness, dear child,
May the Gods lull you to sleep!

The four Vedas are the four chains of the cradle.
May your heart be filled with the nine forms of devotion.


I used to teach them thus: “My dear children, you are not this physical body. Do not mistake physical things for spiritual realities. Don’t become a victim of delusion due to your attachment. This delusion gives you the mistaken impression of the physical reality. Just as the dream state disappears when you wake up from sleep, the delusion caused by moha (attachment) disappears when you awaken into the state of jnana (wisdom).”

Three of our sons, Vikranta, Subahu and Shatrumardhana, named by my husband Ritudwaja, took to ascetism because of my teachings. I named the fourth one Alarka, meaning “mad dog” because of my supreme conviction that it was sheer ignorance to give names to the supreme soul or Atma.

My story is recounted in one of the Puranas.



Who am I?




WOULD YOU LIKE A CLUE?


 

DIVIDER



Q9. Swami says my name means the embodiment of virtue. When my five-year-old son was pushed away from his father’s lap and chided with harsh words by his stepmother, he came running to me with tears in his eyes. I consoled him saying that even harsh words are only for one’s own good, and could be a pointer for destiny. I encouraged him to go into the forest and seek Narayana.

His determination and penance even at that young age gave him eternal fame, and secured not only his father’s love, but also an exalted place as a star in the sky.

Who am I?


WOULD YOU LIKE A CLUE?


 

DIVIDER


Mother’s love (Prema) and God’s grace (Anugraha):

Q10. When my son was a young boy, I encouraged him to follow his father’s example in piety and prayer. I ingrained in him the understanding that a mother makes her son noble and great, and in turn a noble son brings his mother glory. He was so sincere in his efforts that no less than Goddess Raja Rajeshwari fed him with her own milk. He mastered all the scriptures and became one of the greatest spiritual teachers in his illustrious, though short life.

In spite of being a monk, he still fulfilled my last wish even going against a hostile society.

Swami has said that all this was due to the grace of the Divine mother and the love and blessings of me, the physical mother.

Who am I?


WOULD YOU LIKE A CLUE?




 

 

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Dear Reader, did you like this quiz? Is it too difficult? Is it interactive enough? Would you like more such quizzes? Please help us in serving you better by writing to h2h@radiosai.org mentioning your name and country. Thank you for your time.

- Radio Sai Team

 
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