Matha, Pitha, Guru, Deivam

We were all taught early in our life that our parents and teacher are the living Gods visible to naked eyes, with whom you can interact. While we were taught to pray in front of an invisible entity called god visble entities  are required for children to imitate, learn, worship love etc. When a child is born it knows only the mother, then the father steps in and later the teacher. Via this teaching, the child is told to treat them as equal to god. Prayer as a daily ritual was inculcated from a very early age and as soon as children were able to understand, they were asked to do namaskaram to Ummachi (God).  So they would join the mother/grandmother/other elderly people in their prayers.  Thus it was very easy for the child to relate to God from early childhood. The following story was narrated to teach them the importance of being respectful to their parents (read elders); that they were here because God cannot  teach them everyday discipline.
Once upon a time, Shiva and Parvati received the gift of a ripe mango. Their children Ganesha and Karthikeya, both wanted the full fruit. The parents were in a dilemma and decided to give them a test: the winner would get the fruit.  They announced, “Whoever goes round the world and reaches back first will be the winner.” Karthikeya immediately set off on his vehicle the peacock. Ganesha with his vehicle Mooshika (mouse) prostrated himself in front of his parents, went around them once and claimed the prize. To the question of how, Ganesha said, “Our parents are the whole world to us. So by going around them once, I have gone around the world.” The happy parents gifted the fruit to Ganesha. When Karthikeya came back after going round the world, he saw Ganesha with the fruit in his hand. His non-understanding of this simple truth upset him so much that he went away to live alone and meditate in the hills of Palani.