In plain words
"What! Would we take a stick and chase You away?" So they would grieve greatly. I came. I came in the form of a black dog. What does this mean? The culture of Bhārata is the very thing that shows that God is in all beings. Look at the rat. If a rat shows itself on its own, we have it caught; we take a stick and beat it. If this same rat is under Vināyaka, we bow down to it and worship it. Everything that is in the presence of God is worthy of a bow. If we see a snake anywhere outside, we have it caught. When that same snake is the ornament of Īśvara, we bow down to it. The treasure grows according to the nearness. Honour and respect come by virtue of the closeness. If the nearness is lost, there is no one to look you in the face. Everywhere we are in God's presence alone. Wherever you look it is the principle of God. The principle with no coming and going is the principle of God.
Once Pārvatī and Parameśvara set their two sons a contest of play. "Vināyaka, Subrahmaṇya, come here. Today we must set you a task. Do it," they said. "Tell us," said the two. "Mother, we will carry out Your command with bowed heads," they said. "You two must go and circle the whole of this universe and come back. See who comes first: come," they said. Vināyaka's belly is very big. His vehicle, the rat, is very small. How can he travel? They looked on, to test him. Subrahmaṇya's vehicle is the peacock. He sat on it and set off. The peacock is going at speed. But Vighneśvara did not tell the rat to come. He did not worry in the least. He sat on just as he was sitting. He saw Subrahmaṇya coming while he was still that far off. He went round Īśvara and Pārvatī and said, "I came first." Pārvatī said, "What a clever one you are, boy! Your elder brother came running; he is 1st. But if you go round the two of us, how is that as if you had gone round the universe?" She said. It was not that Pārvatī and Parameśvara did not know. They went on staging this kind of play to make known to the world that God is all-pervading. Then Vināyaka said, "Mother! Wherever one looks, it is only the two of You who are there, is it not? Śakti and Īśvara: these two alone. Pārvatī is matter. Īśvara is energy. In the world there are only these two. Going round the two of You, it is as if I had gone round the universe." For that cleverness She gave Vināyaka a fruit. Then She gave a fruit to Subrahmaṇya, who had made such a long round. My boy, in going round and coming back you are 1st. In teaching the inner meaning Vināyaka is 1st. You went round and came back, so here is a fruit. That is Paḷani. It is near Coimbatore.