Could you please tell what exactly it means that one should be submissive and surrender. A woman should be submissive to her husband. Even scriptures teach it... Why should we be submissive and surrender? What exactly does being humble mean?
—Bina, USA
Dear Bina,
Paramhansa Yoganada said that in a relationship between a man and a woman, a man should see the woman as a manifestation of Divine Mother, while the woman should see the man as a manifestation of the Heavenly Father. Equality. Their relationship should be based on mutual respect, inspiring each other, and serving each other with love and respect.
Yogananda taught that we are here on earth to attune to the will of God, and to merge with Him. Our surrender is to God’s will for us, individually. Yoganada never talked about being submissive in human ways, only self-offering to God.
As for your question about humility, it’s important to keep in mnd that humility is not self abasment; rather, it is self forgetfulness. Therefore the humbler we are, which is to say the freer we are from the bondage of ego, the more God can flow through us and bring into manifestation the Divine Plan for our lives.
Blessings,
Diksha
