742. The Role of a Sister

A Jewish proverb says that because God cannot be everywhere, He has created motherhood. A mother is the entire family and sometimes more than a family. A sister, especially, an elder sister, becomes the mother in many families. Children from such families are reluctant to go to a hostel or accept a transfer to another place. Those who have had affectionate mothers, Shaw says, seek no marriage, especially if they were brought up in an artistic environment. A lady at the age of 45 knew nothing but fear. Her life was one of discipline of her mother, the discipline of her husband. To her, life was filled with fear and she was timid. Entering into Mother's atmosphere, she saw the entire fear leaving her. There was expansive joy inside and elevation of sensation.  That is what Mother's atmosphere offers the wretched of creatures. An elder sister replacing the mother becoming the conscience keeper of the house introduces the entire family into such a pleasant set up.

A weaver in 1940 living in a godforsaken village chose to educate his daughter up to M.Sc defying all traditions. She in turn educated the two brothers and sent them to America in the 60s. Sacrifice is a yogic principle. It is said it is a principle that relates man with God. The material sacrifice parents undertake for children is great. The psychological sacrifice children undertake in affectionate families for the parents is noble. A woman of good impulses is motherly by nature. Self-giving is natural to her. The institution of a sister sometimes enters into human nobility. The Divine Mother was a sister as She had a brother. Imagine what She gave her brother. Once when he was crossing the river Seine on a bridge, he heard a voice from heaven, 'If you want, you can become a god'. He could not understand it as a gift from his own sister who was Herself Divine. He did not care to know it.

Brothers appreciate material help and know the value of psychological support. How can they know what spiritual blessings can come to them from a sister whom they evaluate by her social status? If the mother and sister are wonders, children and brothers receiving their affectionate attention is the rule. The institution of family is shrinking and disappearing in the West. Sisters can take to each other. In that case, they become intimate. Intimacy has many definitions. The mother's intimacy with the child is physical. The intimacy of an elder to a youngster can take on itself the tone of spirituality. Professors do have such relations with the students. A sister's intimacy with a sister is at once psychological and biological. An elder sister who takes upon the role of the mother in her family releases spiritual emotions into the family bond. Indian social atmosphere has many bright points, some that cannot be seen in other countries. The sister is an institution in herself. It is a blessing to be born a brother who is adopted by an elder sister assuming the role of a mother.