A mother's primary role is to care for and nurture her children, providing physical needs like food and shelter, as well as emotional support, guidance, and education, significantly impacting their development throughout their lives, often acting as a primary caregiver and teacher. Her influence extends to teaching social skills, moral values, and shaping a child's overall sense of self. In Hindu religion a Mother and Father are given the status of a God - "मातृ देवो भव् पितृ देवो भव् " - Matru devo bhava pitru devo bhawa. In adition, there are 7 others too given status of motherhood. Sanskrit says :
आदौ माता गुरौ पत्नी ब्राह्मणी राजपत्निका
धेनुर्धात्री तथा प्रथ्वी सप्तैता मातरः स्मृतः
Aadou Maata Guruau Patni Bhramani Raajpatnikaa
Dhenurdhaatri tatha Prathwee saptaitaa Maatrah smrutah
Aadou = at first.
Mataa = mother.
Guruau = teacher's.
Patni = wife.
Raajpatnikaa = wife of the King or a high official.
Dheni = a cow.
Dhaatri = a foster mother or a maid servant , who, in absence of a child's mother brings up the child.
Prathwee = the Earth in which we live. Matarah = mothers.
Saptaitaa = these seven.
Smrutah = declared by tradition.
(The rules of social behaviour handed down by tradition and by our Religion to be treated as a Law are called 'Smriti..)
At first one's own mother and afterwards the wife of the Guru, a brahmin lady, a Queen, a cow, a foster mother and the mother Earth, all these seven are declared by tradition as a Mother.
The seven mothers are a concept in Hinduism. The cow is considered a mother because of her gentle nature and her milk, which sustained life in ancient India. The seven divine mothers, or Saptamatrikas, are Brahmani, Maheshvari, Kaumari, Vaishnavi, Varahi, Indrani, and Chamunda. These goddesses are the Shaktis, or powers, of Hindu gods.
Brahmani is the wife of Brahma, Maheshvari is the wife of Shiva, and so on. The Saptamatrikas are mentioned in the Mahabharata. So all the above seven are awarded the status of one's own Mother by our Religion and tradition having regard to the services rendered by them to the mankind.
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