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Wednesday, October 24, 2012

and this is what they thought on Vijay Dashmi....

Ofcourse it all began with Ramji , the seventh incarnation of  Vishnu - Vishnu   the all-pervading essence of all beings, the master of—and beyond—the past, present and future, one who supports, sustains and governs the Universe . Ramji picked up his bow and arrow to slay Ravana .This was his duty- to free his people from all evil forces , and this is what he had been doing in these fourteen years of exile . The final three had to be slayed and as he aimed the first of the three arrows he thought , and prayed, " let there always be someone to guide my people and protect them from the evil ones".  Through a smoke induced haze  a  blurred vision of a slight man, bespectacled , holding a
wooden stick swam before his eyes and vanished . Ramji relaxed and lazily shot the arrow. His prayers had been answered. For had not the man  been wearing  wooden slippers- kharaus - just like what he was wearing right now ?

Lakshmana , Rama's brother waited on the sidelines for his brother to do the final honours. What were his thoughts at this time ? None  actually. His was not to ask , or question, or speak. He had taken it on himself to only follow . He was the original follower of the original leader.

And Ravanna ? you would think that a man on the threshold of death would be praying for forgiveness - full of angst at the evil  that he had embodied coming to an end with his death ? Nah - Ravanna was full of beams , giving a high five to Meghnaad, and sharing a , ahem , dirty joke with Kumbhkaran. He knew what no one else knew till now - and that is that he would not die. Hold on - the story is not being distorted-   his body would die but his evil would not. He knew that where ever the ashes of his ten heads fell - evil would take root there . And when that evil was killed ,  a new stronger strain of the old would come up ...and the cycle would go on.

Today is Vijay Dashmi . The triumph of good over evil . The country's  top brass is at the Ramlila grounds . What are they thinking ? Why  are they looking so  uncomfortable ? They are looking at everyone but not at each other and certainly not at ' Ramji'. The symbol of peace - doves- are released . The 'Silent  One ' shoots the symbolic arrow. Before doing so he looks at  We know who . An imperceptible nod of the head. Permission is granted.  The evil ones are on fire - in a minute they have been burnt to ashes. Everyone claps. It is agreed that good has triumphed . Crackers light up the western sky. The tamasha over , everyone heads back home .

A slight breeze stirs. The smouldering ashes are lifted and carried . Where do they fall ? How does it matter ? It has stopped mattering . The man with the wooden stick has come and gone. For some years after him people talked of faith and service and nationalism.  But slowly , and slowly, all that became a memory. The ashes of Ravanna's ten heads had spread from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. The people , the mango people, know that whether it is  ' the hand' that rocks the cradle or the  saffron forming a brigade at the lord's janambhoomi , they are on their own- rudderless and clueless.

Happy Dussehra !

Monday, October 15, 2012

the secret diary of Digvijay Singh@ diggy raja

I turn the pages of the dictionary( Merriam Webster) feverishly . I am looking for smirk and sneer .  P Q  R   S ...smirk -' a  smile showing insolence , smugness ,scorn'. And  now  sneer -'A contemptous facial expression characterized by a slight raising of one corner of the upper lip'.  The  dictionary closes  with  a  thud. I  rush  to   the  mirror .I  am  looking  for    the smirk and the  sneer. My  face- my  honest    to God  face ,  looks  back   at  me . Alright  ,  there is  a slight  amused  twitch  to one corner of  the  lower lip, but  that  has been  with  me   since  ages ( infact to  let  you  in  on  a  little  known secret,  it was told to me that I entered the world chuckling , with the corner of my left upper lip sort of curled in amusement) .I  tell you  we  Indians  have  no  sense of humour and anybody who shows his humour by the curl of the left upper lift is said to be smirking and sneering . Bah ! No wonder damaadji was driven to call them ' the mango people'. Infact the aam junta should be touching madam's feet in gratitude that her damaad even deigned to talk about them . I tell you these Indians have no sense of duty - duty to worship madam. Did she not leave her Italian roots trailing  behind her  to attach herself  like a limpet to Rajeevji ? But history will be witness to the fact that I never lagged behind in doing my duty by the  Maino ,sorry,  Gandhi   family. My sole purpose in life is to glorify Madam and Rahul baba and I will keep doing it- even if my own partymen smirk and sneer behind me. Just this evening I was asked for a soundbyte on this Kejriwal fellow and while discussing him in my measured way I cleverly managed to bring in  madam's name and her views about the gentleman in question. And still the mango people, sorry , the aam junta keeps asking why Soniaji doesn't open her tightly clenched mouth. Arre baba ( no, no not Rahul baba -this is another baba ) why should she ? Am I not there ? To open  my mouth, that is. Never mind that many a times people are left with their mouths hanging open when I open mine. But enough of this open business. Let me shut the case by calling it a night. I have to wake up early tomorrow for the devi puja starting from tomorrow for the next nine days. Ofcourse , in my case the devi puja carries on 365 days a year.
Jai Sonia Maa