Author: DAIV
The words we say in anger can be taken back only with great effort, and some can never be taken back at all.
In Maharashtra, the story of Pundalika is told with love. In his youth, Pundalika neglected his aged parents, caring more for his own comforts. Later he understood what he had been given and what he had ignored, and he gave himself wholly to their service. One day, as he was massaging his parents' tired feet, Lord Vitthala himself came to his door. Pundalika did not leave his parents to attend to the Lord. He threw out a brick for the Lord to stand upon, and said, "Please wait, I am serving my parents." The Lord, it is said, waited, and stands upon that brick even now.
The Taittiriya Upanishad opens a student's life with the words: "Matru devo bhava, pitru devo bhava", regard your mother and father as divine. This does not mean that parents are perfect. The same text tells students to follow the good they see in their elders, and to leave the rest. The Gita says that good speech does not agitate others, and that it is true, pleasant and beneficial (17.15). Before replying sharply, ask three questions: Is it true? Is it kind? Is it useful?
Today, the next time you feel like snapping at your parents, pause for three breaths. Then speak calmly, and before the day ends, thank them for one thing you usually take for granted.