Pleasing the cosmic gods and goddesses
Of all the cosmic gods, the easiest to please is Lord Shiva. It takes just one tiny leaf. This leaf is called tulsi, which means “devotion.”My dearest Ashram “mother” Mridu felt that I needed more devotion. She was shorter than the shortest, and extremely stout. I had to bend down so much for her to put a tulsi leaf in my mouth every day at twelve o’clock. Then only she felt that I would have devotion. If on rare occasions I missed her or she missed me, she would go to my sister’s place to affectionately scold our family and say how bad I was. That kind of love and concern I got from her!
Lord Shiva is very easy to please. But once he is angry with you, you are finished! He will open up his third eye, and then God knows what he will do. His third eye is so powerful. He can destroy the whole world. Again, his destruction is for our transformation. That we have to know.
Mother Kali can give in one day or in one hour the results which would otherwise take two hundred or three hundred years. But then again, to please her is extremely, extremely, extremely difficult — extremely! Once she is pleased, you can say that in the twinkling of an eye she will give you everything. But to please her is a most arduous task.
With Lord Vishnu it takes time. It is a slow process, a slow process. The Avatar of Lord Vishnu is Sri Krishna. He is always smiling, singing and dancing, but to please him is not an easy task.
Mother Lakshmi is another Goddess whom it takes time to please. It is a very slow process to please her.
Mother Saraswati is also not so easy to please. Again, it takes time.
Lord Ganesha will give you realisation, but you have to know that this does not mean the highest God-realisation. It can mean that if you have an earthly desire or a little bit of aspiration, he will fulfil it. But you have to pray to him first. Then only, if he is satisfied, they say you will be able to please others. It is a very slow process.
Mother Durga is another Goddess who is very, very difficult to please. She is very strict! Mother Kali is one of the aspects of Mother Durga. In our Chandi,2 when she had to fight with all the asuras, Mother Kali came into being. She is very difficult to please; but once she is pleased, then she gives everything. In the highest world she is golden, and so beautiful. Here when she fights for us in the vital world she is dark, black.
