On seeing the question from a great one who is asking a real meaning to 1) mathru, 2) pithru
3) Acharya, and 4) Athithi means, he needs an explanation for '' Athithi '' which occupies the place of God. i am sure, he did not expect a '' dictionary '' meaning or a meaning to '' Athithi '', since a questioner have sincerely, honestly know the details.
The meaning to '' Athithi '' is told only as a '' guest ''. In my home, every day relations are coming, friends are coming and many known people are coming. who is the '' Athithi '' among the visitors.
If we reside in a remote village, we take the avatar of '' Athithi '', but when we reside in an important city, and in an important place having all facilities to reach easily the said known, friends, relations are on reach us. can we title them as '' Athithi '' ?
so, i guess that the great saying ''Athithi'' should have a special status. if then what it should be ? The said '' Athithi '' should be above all such relations, friends, known etc., how can one identify the said '' Athithi '' among the visitors is the question.
The indian tourism development corporation cleanly identifies the '' athithis '' and say ''devo bhava'' towards them. If so, what is then for this..''..Indians may flatter themselves into believing they are generous hosts but they actually aren’t. The much-touted principle of Athithi devo bhava applies only to domestic tourists, not to eccentric foreigners. Otherwise, Japanese tourists would not have complained of being harassed by a guide at the Sun Temple in Konark. Otherwise non-resident Indians would not have felt like running away from the clutches of greedy pujaris at Kalighat in Kolkata.
“Tourism is about opening up your own culture with due tolerance and utmost respect for the culture of the visitors. Indians are too immersed in their medieval ethos to understand the worldwide cultural crosscurrents of the 21st century. There’s an old Chinese adage that says a closed mind is like a closed book, just a block of wood. We are indeed the wooden people.”
A knowledgeable and learned one putting a question and asking us the meaning means that he knows fully well, and just he wish to distribute the knowledge among us and on understanding the question, i say this must be the meaning which i know with my level of knowledge.
i am taking your time in explaining the meaning to the '' Athithi Devo bhava ''. just translating the sanskrit word will not yield good results and will not attract the asker. The answer should satisfy the readers as well as should give happy to the questioner. Now going to the meaning ''Athithi Devo Bhava '' ...
It is said by Sage Sukha that one who gets to hear this story will be immensely blessed with Vedic knowledge and intelligence. When we acquire knowledge, our ego and pride immediately shoots up. So in order to teach humility, Sage Sukha narrated the story of Ambarisha.
Ambarisha Mahabhaga: sapthadweepavathim mahim |
Avyyayam cha shiyam labdva vibhavam chathulam bhuvi||
Menethi durlabham pumsam sarvam thath swapnasamsthutham |
Vidhwan vibhavanirvanam thamo vishathi yath puman ||
Ambarisha had inherited the world and yet he did not attach any pride in him for this ownership. He considered it as a clod of earth and he fixed his mind exclusively on the lotus feet of the Lord. But, now what is happening ? We spend million dollars to buy an apartment in the fiftieth or sixtieth floor. When we jump a little hard our downstairs neighbor would bicker on us. We don’t have the same freedom to hit a nail on the floors. We don’t have any ownership on the walls and the roof but paid a million dollar for the air enclosing the apartment.
Ambarisha was forever in the divine communion with the Lord. He didn’t spend much time in ruling his kingdom. His mind was forever set to the lotus feet of Lord Sri Krishna. He would eat only the Prasad [food that was offered] to the Lord. He would only wish to divine names and glories of the Lord and if he wanted to smell some good fragrance, he would take some tulsi leaves that were offered to the holy feet of the Lord.
Ambarisha once decided to perform ekadasi fasting [vratha/upavasa] for a year. That fast ended on the Uttana ekadasi day in the month of karthikai. Ambarisha went to Madhuvana forest in Brindavan. Madhuvana is a very popular place amongst the bhagavathas as Lord Dhruva had performed penance in that forest.
On the day of Uttana Dwadasi, the culminating day for his fast, he had invited everyone for a grand feast.The Ekadasi Vratha bears fruit only if an (guest) athithi is invited home and is well-fed and offer the pranams and make him highly contended and then we consume food before the end of Dwadasi. Why is a guest called athithi? The term ‘thithi’, refers to a day [to be specific, it refers to the Dwadasi day]. It is on this day that we should visit other people’s homes. But a person who doesn’t mind whether it is a ‘Thithi’ or not, is indeed an