India, Oct. 12 -- Incredible, Inspirational India! A quartet of Small Indian civet kittens were delivered in a gunny bag to 'Van Mata' Parvati Devi (51). Her heart was torn asunder and her maternal instincts fiercely roused. The orphans had never seen their mother. They were so newborn that their eyes were yet to open. The mother civet was missing, presumed dead. "I thought to myself, O Almighty, these children will never know their mother's love. Maine in bachhon ko god le liya. After 62 days of my care, they grew from under a 100g to 3.5-4kg each. We handed them to the Machia Biological Park Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre, Jodhpur, as we could not feed them meat due to our beliefs. I wept and wept as the civets were taken away in a box. But it was for the good of the civets, and I had other orphans looking to me with imploring eyes," Parvati told this writer. Parvati and her husband, Peeraram Dhayal (58), run the Jambeshwar Environment & Wildlife Society Deora in Rajasthan's Jalore district. Since 1998, the couple and volunteers rehabilitated 4,300 creatures suffering from dog bites, accidents, illness, heat strokes, poacher bullets, poisoning, etc. The earnest efforts of the Dhayals attracted international, national and state honours, including the 2018 RBS Earth Heroes Award. Parvati descends from the legacy of Amrita Devi Bishnoi, her husband and their three daughters who sacrificed their heads in 1730 to the troops of Maharaja Abhay Singh of Marwar. Amrita's family wrapped themselves around Khejri trees rather than letting troops chop them. It led to the killing of 358 more Bishnois before the Maharaja was done with his Jallianwala Bagh-like massacre. Forerunners to the eco-feminist Chipko movement, the Bishnois adhere to: 'pran jaye per vachan na jaye'. Parvati had commenced her mission early, as a lactating mother. Her four infants would share her breast milk with Chinkara fawns. Sheer hard work, indomitable will and eco-spiritual instincts made Parvati an accomplished wildlife caregiver though she lacked formal training. A poignant aspect of Parvati is suppressed grief, of having to part with creatures she cradled and some dying before her gentle eyes. How many breaks can a heart take? The way Parvati reared the civets is a saga of unconditional love. Sleepless mums manage an infant at a time --- Parvati had four. She was simultaneously rearing langur, hare, chinkara and peacock orphans, and provisioning adult creatures daily from 4 am with volunteers. There are currently 200 creatures in the society's corral. "Every night, I would get up 4-5 times. The civets would issue low hisses to signal hunger. I would take out cow milk from the fridge and lukewarm it to feed each 1-2 ml. Their bedding was changed every 1-2 hours because of faeces and urine. They were given umpteen baths to maintain hygiene," she added. Van Mata has renounced enticements such as jewellery and marriage extravaganzas. She shuns gossip with mohalla women. Creatures are her 'sakoon', and dear as her four grandchildren. Parvati reckons she is blessed because she will have endless grandkids to dote on, all her life! But when betrothed to Dhayal in 1988, her dreams were different. "My bride wanted me to be a money-making machine. I was oriented towards wildlife. With time, I got her to walk my different path in life. Thereon, the 'sangam' of Parvati and myself became the fountainhead of our rescue work," Dhayal told this writer. Parvati has the last word: "Had we as a married couple kept quarrelling and bickering, we would not have been able to save the victims of human greed!"...