Mother Elephant
By Deborah Sharma
A gentle soul in a mammoth body,
Embodying ancient wisdom,
Soft maternal instincts entwined
With loyal matriarchal power,
Nurturing her compliant community
Into a mutual union of tender love.
Charitable in her blessing as natural provider,
Animals partake of her good works,
Quenching thirst in her dug-out waterholes,
Safely sheltering in her excavated caves,
She indeed emulates one who overcomes obstacles,
Guiding with kindness, teaching with patience.
Leading her herd to
safety through rough terrain,
Instilling courage to climb steep mountains,
Facing endeavours with steady determination,
Mercifully protective - a benevolent leader,
Bestowing good fortune in her generous nature,
Mother elephant, your compassion grants peace.
Explanation:
The matriarch elephant mother (who is often the oldest and largest female – can live up to 70) is the bedrock of the elephant family and responsible for defending her herd. And, just like our mothers, they impart a treasure trove of knowledge they have gained from their long lives.
However, encroachment is one of the biggest threats to elephant habitat. The main reasons elephants come to agricultural land and rural areas for water and food is because their original water sources have been closed down. Elephants are worshipped in India as Ganesha and yet, we do not understand their need for space. Elephants are not predators. They will not kill humans unless they feel threatened or in response to aggression *
In the wild, female elephants protect, nuture and teach young ones. A calf can lose its mother due to poaching for their tusks, or natural causes. Baby elephants under the age of two die without their mother unless rescued since they cannot obtain food or protection it needs to survive on its own. **
Blogger Priyanka Sharma-Sindhar recently wrote a piece for the Atlantic titled “Being an ‘Elephant Mom’ in the Time of the Tiger Mother,”
Elephant Mom: A mom who believes that she needs to nurture, protect and encourage her children.
Tiger Mother: A mother who is very strict with her child to foster an academically competitive spirit.
Of course, there is the connection with Ganesha, bestower of good fortune and remover of obstacles, for which elephants are well-known. Mother elephant through teaching, aims to make baby elephants independent, self-sufficient and able to face and overcome their own challenges with confidence and faith. Sometimes, that can be seen as tough and maybe they would rather have mother elephant just solve the issue all the time while they sit back. However, mother knows this does not benefit her baby long-term. So even whilst we ask Ganesha to remove obstacles, it is more beneficial that we are provided tools and resources to learn to overcome them with His guiding prescence and blessings with us, even if this may cause pain in the short-term, if we pay attention, we will blossom and grow.
** https://www.4elephants.org/blog/article/why-do-elephants-make-great-mothers
Comments
Post a Comment