received through Brahma prabhu – http://www.swami.org/sanga

Srila Prabhupada Bhagavad-gita lecture 4.1-2,

So this material nature is our mother. According to Vedic conception, the material nature, mother, is worshiped. There are seven kinds of mother. Not one mother.

atma-mata guroh patni
brahmani raja-patnika
dhenur dhatri tatha prthvi
saptaita matarah smrtah

Atma-mata, real mother, from whom I have taken birth, atma-mata.

Guroh patni, the wife of spiritual master.

Atma-mata guroh patni brahmani. Brahmani, the wife of a brahmana, learned scholar. Atma-mata guroh patni. Why learned scholar? He is also guru because from learned scholar you learn so many things, and guru teaches us so many things. Therefore he is father, and his wife is mother.

Atma-mata guroh patni brahmani raja-patnika. Raja-patnika means a queen. And now there is no king, queen, but formerly there was king and queen. So queen is also mother because king is father. He is giving protection to the citizens.

Atma-mata guroh patni brahmani raja-patnika dhenur, cow. Cow is our mother. Why? She is supplying milk. You are drinking milk. So you are killing cows? Oh, that's not good, killing mother.

Atma-mata guroh patni brahmani raja-patnika dhenur dhatri tatha prthvi. Prthvi, that material nature, is also mother be-cause by the material nature, I got this body.