In plain words
This is my second wish,” she said.
“Mother! I will surely fulfil your wish. I will try to solve the water problem in our village,” Vidyāsāgar promised. First he had some borewells sunk. But after a while the water in them, too, sank away. “My son! The borewells you had sunk have turned out to be of no use at all. There is water only in the rainy season. By the time summer comes they run dry, without a single drop. So find some lasting remedy for the water problem,” his mother said. Then Vidyāsāgar had a large well dug in the village and put an end to the water problem completely. His mother was very happy.
Some time later a promotion came to Vidyāsāgar in his job. His salary, too, went up a good deal. He came to his mother and asked, “Mother! What is your third wish?” “My son! You have had a school built, you have provided water. But the people of this village suffer for want of proper medical care. For medical help, mothers have to carry their children to the neighbouring village. I cannot bear to see their hardships. So if you have a small hospital built in our village as well, I will be happy,” she said. As his mother wished, Vidyāsāgar had a hospital built too. In this way he fulfilled all his mother's wishes and gave her great joy.
The ornament of learning is humility
By his good conduct Vidyāsāgar rose step by step to a very high position in his work. Along with that, his earnings, too, grew a good deal. Even so, he conducted himself with great humility and obedience, and earned a good name. One day his mother: “My son! I am very happy that you have come to a high post. But whatever you do, do not let Ahaṅkāra grow because your earnings have grown,” she counselled him. As it is said, “When wealth grows, arrogance grows; when arrogance grows, bad qualities grow without fail...”, with some people bad qualities too go on growing the more their wealth grows. Vidyāsāgar, though, just as his mother had taught him, developed humility along with his learning.