A garland from the heart
She was wearing a very simple, slightly crumpled nine-yard sari. Her face was calm despite the late-morning rush in the temple. The faint wrinkles on her face spoke of a life well lived. Amid the flowing crowd of Shri Mahalakshmi Temple, she looked at me and smiled.
I was standing at the threshold of the sanctum. My duty was to pass the offerings forward, remind people to look toward Goddess Mahalakshmi, and occasionally raise my voice—“Hey! No mobiles, no photos!”—as some could not resist capturing the divine beauty of Mother Lakshmi on their phone cameras.
The old Amma held a cotton bag tightly in her hand. From it, she carefully took out a small steel box and opened it before me. I assumed it would contain some homemade sweets. But to my surprise, inside was a delicate little garland, beautifully woven from the flowers of the Indian cork tree.
She smiled gently and said, “For the first time, these flowers have bloomed in our home. They are for Aai Saheb—Mahalakshmi.”
I received the small garland and handed it to my cousin, who placed it upon the beautiful idol of Mahalakshmi.
When I turned back, the old Amma stood with folded hands, a serene smile on her face and tears glistening in her eyes.
She looked at me and softly said, “I am truly very happy today.”
It all happened in the time duration of 1-2 mins . But I remembered a shloka from Bhagvat Gita
पत्रं पुष्पं फलं तोयं यो मे भक्त्या प्रयच्छति |
तदहं भक्त्युपहृतमश्नामि प्रयतात्मन: || 9.26||
patraṁ puṣhpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayachchhati
tadahaṁ bhaktyupahṛitam aśhnāmi prayatātmanaḥ
If one offers to Me with devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or even water, I delightfully partake of that item offered with love by My devotee in pure consciousness.
As a priest of the temple who stands for Seva, I meet many different devotees every day. The moment they behold the Goddess, their faces light up with joy. Some offer humble pranams. Some loudly raise slogans — “Ambabaichya navan chang bhala!”, “Ambabaicha udo udo!”, “Narayani Narayani!”
Some have tears of joy in their eyes. Some pray with teary eyes and aching hearts, seeking resolution to the problems in their lives. They pray for blessings.
What they offer becomes immaterial, because the purity of surrender surpasses everything. It is the realization that there is a higher power — in the form of the Divine Mother — who always says, “Tathastu” to our sincere prayers.
We go through many ups and downs in life. In the process, we forget that there is a higher power, and that we are reflections of it. We become disconnected from that divinity and begin identifying ourselves with our problems.
But there comes a moment in life when we call upon the Divine — in whichever form — from the depth of our hearts. In that very moment, He opens our hearts and fills them with immense grace, which reflects outward as deep contentment.
Just like that old Amma who remembered goddess for the first blossom of Indian cork tree.I am sure Ambabai has clearly blessed her with Tathastu.
