We are naturally suspicious of all the ideas and people coming from the west. Though it is wrong to generalize and judge anything or anybody with a preconceived mind, there is also reason for this suspicion and hesitation. We have a history laden with treacherous bullies from west, who were bent on subduing us through crooked ideas. So when Sister Nivedita wanted to come over to India and serve her, Swami Vivekananda, had doubts whether she will be accepted wholeheartedly by our society. When Sister Nivedita came to India, Swami Vivekananda was a bit anxious how to make a place for her in Hindu society. But Holy Mother Saradama accommodated her in her own room. This made things easy for Swami Vivekananda as that action melted all the resistance which Swamiji perceived. That was a bold decision by Holy mother because that was a time when our society was sunk deep in its conservative attitudes. What we see in Sister Nivedita is all the reflections of the dynamism which holy Mother had in herself.
Sister Nivedita’s view about Indian Womanhood was shaped by Holy Mother. The exaltation of Motherhood is the bedrock of the Indian social structure. The west has idealized the wife, but India has exalted the Mother. It is this aspect of motherhood which was transmuted to Sister Nivedita by her Great Master and Holy Mother. She realized the high ideals of purity and chastity that lay unfathomed in the profound structure of the Hindu society. She took it as her duty to spread this light to the west in all matters with regard to India. She painted the immaculate purity of Sita, the undying fidelity of Savitri, the stead fast will of Parvati. The immortal women of India were painted with on a rich Oriental Tapestry, to remain as ideals for all the future generations. They have become sentinels directing womanhood in its march towards purity and perfection through Sister Nivedita’s pen.
The modern day feminists, who believe that aping the maledom is all that which makes way for liberation, should take a cue from her life. An Indian woman modelled herself in the mould of Sita, will stand out as a thoroughly integrated, full-fledged and complete woman. Sister Nivedita’s love for this land was coupled with such ideals which this land fostered for ages. The ideals which made Motherhood, the axis around which the family, and its extension, the society spun. If we fail to exalt the Motherhood, we will also fail to see the Mother as the consciousness and force of the Divine. Both are inter related.
V.V.Balasubramanian
