The feminine principle that pervades all nature can be understood by enquiry. All women belong to one category. The entire feminine world is the image of Parvati. This was an affirmation of the truth about the universality of the mother principle in nature. However, man thinks differently and feels that he is the Lord. Man truly, cannot be described as ‘purusha’ as he himself is a part of nature. All these precious metals like the gold, silver etc. emanate from the earth. Similarly, all the, living beings, man, woman, birds, animals are all verily made up of the earth. Everything that has taken its birth in creation belongs to Prakriti, nature. Therefore the feminine principle is all pervasive in nature. (SV, pp. 10-11)
The Feminine Principle is spoken of as the illusion imposed upon Himself by the Lord, as the energy with which He equipped Himself out of His own will. This is the maya, the feminine form. This is why woman is considered as the embodiment of the highest energy (Parashakti Swarupa). She is the faithful companion of man, his fortune; since she is the concretization of the will of the Lord, she is mystery, wonder, the representative of the protective principle, the queen of his home, his beneficence, the illumination of the house.
Women, who are the repositories of the embodiment of energy (shakti Swarupa), are in no way inferior; how full of fortitude, patience, and love their nature is! Their self-control is seldom equalled by men. They are the exemplars and leaders for men to tread the spiritual path. Pure selfless love is inborn in women. Women who are full of knowledge, who are cultured, who are bound by love, and who are keen on discriminating whether their words and deeds are in conformity with dharma —such women are like the goddess Lakshmi, bringing joy and good fortune to the home. That home, where husband and wife are bound together by holy love, where every day both are engaged in the reading of books that feed the soul, where the name of the Lord is sung and His glory remembered —that home is really the home of the Lord, Vaikuntha! The woman who is attached to her husband by means of love is indeed a flower radiating rare perfume; she is a precious gem, shedding lustre in the family. A wife endowed with virtue is really a brilliant jewel. (DV, pp. 30-31)
Prakriti (Nature) is the Mother, the Feminine principle, the Maya (illusory energy). She is the great teacher. If you do not learn the lessons well, Nature punishes you, boxes you in the ear, hits you on the head. She is a stern merciless instructress; but, if you learn well, she will lead you proudly to the Presence of Purushottama (the Supreme Person). Obey Prakriti and be well trained by her: then, you can inherit the Glory of Purushottama. If you disregard Her teaching, the Mother gets disgusted with you and the Father too will disregard your entreaties. The commands of Prakriti given for your good are called, dharma. Have that dharma as the witness of all your thoughts, words and deeds. Be guided every instant by the dictates of that Dharma, and success will be yours. (SSS Vol.42, p. 120)
It is obvious that feminine birth is estimable, adorable and sublime. The Veda also adores the feminine principle in various ways. Vedic rituals and practices accord a high place to women. (SSS Vol.28, p. 162)
From ancient times, how highly have women been held in our tradition. All energy emanates from the female principle. This sacred feminine principle is grossly perverted in unsightly and immoral forms by the films and magazines.
Such vulgar exhibitionism is destructive of Bharatiya culture. We have to protect our culture and restore proper status of the feminine behaviour. We have to seek some suitable method for achieving this. Swami desires to fund a few lakhs rupees for those who can come forward with appropriate activities for the restoration and upholding of true feminine values and traditions in the media. With money, you should achieve worthy objectives like this. In this world, much is achieved by money, and there is no harm in using money in the work of upholding righteousness. All manner of obscenity must be eliminated from the newspapers and the other media. Exposure of young people to such images affects their minds adversely and even ruins their lives. To work against this trend and to strengthen Bharatiya culture, I am prepared to help to any extent. Truth must be expressed, righteousness extolled, injustice and evil opposed, obscenity expunged, and honour and respect of womanhood upheld. The respect of Bharatiya culture is based on the high regard it bestows on women. Welfare of women is the true welfare of Bharat. We are converting the goddesses of welfare into objects of vice. (SSS Vol.34, pp. 221-222)