1006. Which part of the body is important???

A mother of a college going young man asked him, “Which according to you is the most important part of the body????”

The youngster was puzzled by this question from his mother and tried to take a guess at what he thought would be the correct answer.  

As he was able to hear the question from his mother he thought to make the sound waves audible was very important, so he said, “Amma, Shravana (ability to hear) is important so it is ears, isn’t it.”

“No, even those who have difficulty in hearing can manage and live on, thinking about it and then tell me there is no hurry.” 

The next day the young man returned from his college. He was thinking about the answer for the question, he had contemplated the correct answer. So this time he told his mother, “Amma, Drushya (ability to see) is very important, so it must be our eyes. Right???” 

Mother looked at her son and smiled, “You are on the right path of thinking, but that is not the correct answer because there are many people who are blind.” 

The young man was stumped again, He continued his quest for answer and over a few days he did mention many parts of the body both internal and external, but his mother always said, “No. But you are getting smarter every time you are trying to answer.”  

It was like the situation in Taittiriya Upanishad where Varuna and his son Bhrigu discuss about Brahman. The question was what is Brahman? Every time Bhrigu would think and came back repeatedly to Varuna and told Annam (Food), Prana (Breath), Manah (Mind), Buddhi (Intellect). None was correct then Varuna asked him to contemplate and the answers he had got to arrive at the exact answers. The material body, deeper than it was the vital breath, then the thinking mind, and the intellect —and found something very mysterious. What did he realise? Finally Brighu realised that Bliss is Brahman.  Anando Brahmeti Vyajanat.

Likewise this young man too had many answers to his mother question and a year passed and one day his Thatha (grandfather) passed away. Everyone in the house was unable to bear the loss of the elderly man who was always jovial. His absence created a silence which was eerie and that was most unbearable. The young man’s father also could not control the tears.

Amma looked at her son and asked, “Do you know the most important body part yet, my son?”

The son was surprised at the timing at which his mother was expecting him to answer the year long question. She asked him to look at his father.

She said, “My son, the most important body part is your shoulder. No, it is not because it can hold the head when they cry. Everybody needs a shoulder to cry at sometime in life. I only hope that you have enough love and friends that you will always have a shoulder to cry on when you need it. And your shoulder too will have enough space to accommodate your friend who is in grief.”

The young man’s father had his head inclined on the shoulder of his friend who was patting it and consoling him.     

It is quite common for people to forget the good things told about them, they even forget all the good deeds done to them. But they will never forget how one makes them feel.