Mom, who is my father?

Imagine how a mother would feel when her own son asks her this question. Today, single motherhood is not uncommon. So this question may not upset many a single mother. But I am talking about a mother who probably lived 5000 years ago.

The story I am going to narrate is the story of a boy named Satyakama. The word Satyakama literally means – one who is the seeker of truth. He was the only son to his single mother Jabala.

As a kid, Satyakama would probably have never seen his father. Nor his mother ever told him who his father was.

Was it curiosity that prompted Satyakama to ask this question? No. He was a grownup boy who had accepted the fact that he does not have a father. In that case, why is he now asking this question?

The reason is that Satyakama wanted to go to school so that he can study. But without knowing the details about his parentage, he could not join any school.

What did Jabala do when asked such a question? She had nothing to hide. Nor was she afraid to tell the truth. So she told Satyakama the truth. 

Her reply was

“When I was young, I served many people in many ways. I begot you at that time. But I have no idea who your actual father was. But one thing is sure. I am your mother, and you are my son. So if anyone asks you who you are, tell them that you are Satyakama, Jabala’s son”

The Upanishad does not say who Jabala was. Was she a prostitute? Or was she a slave serving several people? We have no idea! Even the well known commentators on this Upanishad say very little about the context Jabala was forced to give such a reply.

Actually, the exact question Satyakama asked was “Mother, to which family (Gotra) do I belong?”. The commentators have taken these words literally and said that Jabala probably forgot the family name since she was busy serving many people. But if you look at the context, it appears that what Satyakama asked was about his father.

Why does one have to know about his parentage before joining any school?

As I discussed in the previous post, the Indian society was Varna based. What a student studies in school depends on what Varna he hails from. If he is from a Brahmin family, his primary focus would be studying the Vedas. If he is from a Warrior family, then he would be taught warfare techniques in addition to other basic subjects, and so on.

So it was essential for the student to know details about his family background before he can be admitted to any school.

Indian society was largely patriarchal. Varna of a kid is normally decided by the father. So, unless one knows who his father was, it is difficult to know his Varna. And that is exactly the reason, why Satyakama wanted to know about his parentage.

Did Satyakama finally join the school? We will see that in the next post.

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A story of Satyakama Jabala from Chandogya Upanishad, which is part of Sama Veda. Upanishads are concluding parts of ancient Indian Vedic scriptures believed to be at least 5000 years old. The interpretation is by Dr. King (Copyright © 2019 Dr. King)