Lament of a small man

 

Dear citizen,

In this unimaginably vast cosmos, brahmaand as we call it, our planet is a tiny speck of rock and metal as that great astronomer Carl Sagan famously said, “where we are like butterflies who flutter for a day and think it is forever.” What then is the (existential) significance of a hubris-intoxicated nothing-me, and my idle fulminations?  Par jo dil men hai nihaan, weh dard jubaan kar rahi hai bayaan! 

Putting politics and our individual persuasions/biases aside, speaking heart-to-heart, I have been most deeply disturbed by the current rash of demolitions, the mounting levels of Hindu-Muslim poison in the air and vicious hatred-mongering clogging the social media. Whither my beloved Bharat is turning? I ask myself. At times it gives a frightening sense of déjà vu of the pre-partition/partition days. But then the dialectic was different. It served the masters of our enslaved nation best. They played on their divide-and-rule policy to the hilt to perpetuate their rule, nursing a vile smirk as we rioted and killed each other. But that such sinister monster of communal divide should rear its ugly head and walk the streets aroused/inflamed by hate speeches, aggressive processions and abusive slogans makes me shudder with horror. Surely, our political leaders of all hues can conjure up better agendas to win votes: ‘green’ agendas that promote goodwill, harmony, love, peace. A squabbling, rioting nation can only reverse towards medievalism, never march forwards; and become an object of ridicule and derision in the world.

I am personally more carnal than religious and therefore lay no claim to any scholarship in matters religious. But to me any religion is a path to salvation. Our own speaks of piety, cultivating peace of mind, enlightenment, detachment from materialistic pursuits, meditation, mokhsha. A religious procession - by the Hindus, Muslims, Christians or Sikhs - should indeed be a sight to behold. It can be festive, colourful, merry and joyous but such that evokes deep feelings of adulation among all- including the non-conformists like me.

Please dear citizen, tell me honestly, no malice, no aspersion intended, is it fair and proper or in any way ennobling to take out a procession brandishing swords, guns and lathis, and rending/ fouling the air with incendiary slogans/threats? Deliberately stopping at the others’ places of worship? I, for one, a Hindu, would only diminish myself and bring shame on my grand religion by shouting rape threats.   Such uncouth shouts provoke nothing but a violent retaliation triggering a horrifying chain reaction.

As I write this my mind at once goes to the Sikh processions we all see in our towns. What a riot of yellow-blue, how eye-catching, how enchanting the spectacle is! Likewise, what a visual delight are the jhankis during our Holi festival in my own Palampur town. People descend from remote villages and vie with each other to behold the bewitching sight of volunteers imaginatively done up as deities depicting some mythological story.

I wish my great nation so beautiful, so fragrantly diverse, reverts to this festive spirit of celebration; again becomes the envy of the world, the jewel that it was and still can be– a shining light of multiculturalism, inclusivity, peace, love, goodwill; all citizens sharing each other’s smiles and tears, striving for a nobler, higher goal; a country led by sagacious politician-statesmen fired by the glorious tradition of “sarve bhavntu sukhinah…”; country of Gurudev Rabindranath’s, Gandhiji’s dreams…

 Preachy, maudlin me? Sorry folks.  But here’s Sahir:

                                “आओ के ख़्वाब बुनें कल के वास्ते

               वर्ना यह रात आज के संगीन दौर की

               डस लेगी जान-ओ-दिल को...”

*

PS. For more on the subject read Julio Ribeiro’s ‘A voice…’, The Tribune, 06.05.

***