The Mother and the motherland

English, 9th Grade , Chapter 6.

ShankaraHe was born in Kaladi , a beautiful village on the banks of river Poorna . He lost his father in his early childhood . His mother Aryamba brought him up with all love and care . For poor Aryamba , he was the light of his mother’s eyes and spirit of her life.

• Shankara was a precocious child.• He was incredibly brilliant in his studies , his reasoning was always

accurate and his social interactions were of softness and humility.• The whole village loved him for his admirable qualities.

• It was a hot summer day in Kaladi . Aryamba was going to the river Poorna to take a bath . It was her practice to take a holy dip in the river everyday. Aryamba was old and weak and the river was far away from the house.

• On her way to the river , Aryamba fell down and fainted . Little Shankara ran to her rescue and nursed his mother. He adviced his mother to give up her old practice. But she would not . So Shankara thought of a plan.

• He carried out his wonderful plan. The course of the river was diverted . Then the Poorna started flowing in front of their house . It became a boon to the whole village.

What did Shankara want to do?

• By the age of 8 Shankara had become a profound scholar and always thought of peace and prosperity for all.

• He wanted to unite the people of different faiths .• He wanted to become a Sanyasi and bring about a

spiritual metamorphosis .• He wanted to become a reformer and wipe out social evils

.

What did his mother want him to do?• Marry and setup a family .Support her in her old age.• She said she would let him become a Sanyasi to serve the

motherland on one condition that he visit her on her death and perform her final rites.

• Travelled across the length and breadth of India .

• Shankara‘s philosophy was “God is Omnipresent and the same lord is called by different names “.

• Pandits of Kashmir honored him as a teacher Omniscient .

• Established mutts at the following locations

1. Puri in the East2. Sringeri in the South3. Dwaraka in the west4. Badrinath in the North

• He wanted to awaken the oneness among the people of our country.

On becoming a Sanyasi

• One day he learnt about the ill health of his mother .So he rushed home to see his mother.

• Aryamba was bedridden , and was longing to see her son who had become a great reformer and sage.

• Shankara told his mother : “ Amma you are great , great as the mother of the universe. I salute you , I serve you. Be in peace. “

• Aryamba breathed her last and Shankara performed her final rites. He kept his promise to his mother even though it was against tradition.

• Thus Shankara served both his mother and mother land.

Mathru Devo Bhava

Easy questions• Name the river mentioned in the lesson

– Poorna

• Who brought up Shankara ?– Aryamba

• Why did Shankara’s mother visit the river daily?– To take bath

• What title did the pandits of Kashmir give Shankara?– Omniscient

Who said to Whom and when

a. Aryamba b. Shankarac. Shankara wanted to become a sanyasi , and his mother agreed to this on

the condition that he perform her final rites

Who said to Whom and when

a. Shankarab. Aryamba ,Shankara’s motherc. When Shankara’s mother is on her death bed

Who said to Whom and when

a. Teacherb. Raghunath , a Studentc. Shankara, a Sanyasi performing the final rites of his mother was

considered wrong as it was against tradition

Match the following

Match the Opposites

Convert to indirect speech• Shankara said “Mother I will serve you “.

– Shankara said to his mother that he will serve her• Deepti said “Sumukh, I will go to Bangalore tomorrow”.

– Deepti said to Sumukh that she will go to Bangalore tomorrow

• Nazeer said “Hari, I like you very much”.– Nazeer said to Hari that she likes him very much

• The teacher said “I will take a special class on Sunday”.– The teacher said that he will take a special class on Sunday

• The captain said , “We will win the match”.– The captain said that we will win the match

Convert to passive voice• Vibha prepared coffee .

– Coffee was prepared by Vibha.• Krishna cleaned the bicycle.

– Bicycle was cleaned by Krishna.• Ashwatha welcomed the guest.

– The guest was welecomed by Ashwatha.• Sanjaya killed the rat.

– The rat was killed by Sanjaya.• Kishnu opened the gate.

– The gate was opened by Kishnu.• Pratheek is reading a story.

– A story is being read by Pratheek.• Shashwathi is doing homework.

– Home work is being done by Shaswathi.• Megha is watching a film.

– A film is being watched by Megha.• Aishwarya honored the teacher.

– The teacher was honored by Aishwarya.• Vineetha is washing the frock.

– The frock is being washed by Vineetha.

FILL UP WITH PREPOSITIONS

Kashi is on the banks of river Ganga. It is a place of pilgrimage for millions of Indians. Lord Vishwanatha is the presiding deity of Kashi. People go to Kashi to visit the temple of Vishwanatha. They pray for the blessing of the Lord.