My trips to Babulnath
Master of the Game was a novel by Sidney Sheldon. I started reading Sidney Sheldons much before I started my dose of Mills n Boons. In school, the library teacher helped me select classics...abridged versions ofcourse. English was not the spoken language. By eighth std, with a great English tedacher, I had the urge to enjoy the language. In terms of marks I excelled in English but Hindi is the languauge I thought in. I prayed in Gujarati,in my heart. The verbal prayers were in Sanskrit with my Grandmother and in English in the school assembly.
For years I never understood the meaning of all that I prayed. Our family was very serious about certain issues. God was one of them. No one was forced to pray or visit the temple. That came naturally to all of us. When we prayed, we prayed very seriously. Uncle was almost angry while praying. Mom and Gran wanted the servants to be at their beck n call while praying. So the servant ran to get the flowers, water milk, ghee, plates, sugar, hot milk, raw milk, cloth to wipe hands and more. The Puja room was nice , dark and cosy. Each one thought their praying and worshiping style was better. Someone lit agarbattis in all rooms, someone put lots of water in the Tulsi. But all of us were very significant in our actions. During vacations, I remember going around Vishnu n Tulsi at home all of 108 times. The Pandit was there for lunch on full moon, eleventh day of the lunar cycle and all other auspicious days. Then there would be saints visiting from different parts of the country.
When we went on trips, only religious songs and Garbas played in the car. Same at home. We d listen to Ramayan on cassettes by Murari Bapu. This was before the onset of tv in Dhanbad. Even then , none of us missed the Ramayan n Mahabharat on tv. Now when I read Devdutt Patnaik and his interpretations of mythology, I am amazed that my Gran had told me most of the stories and we had visited almost all the important religious places in India before we turned ten. All this was not a rule or discipline to be followed. All of this came naturally to the family. God was a part of us. We did pray and we got all that we prayed for.While majoring in philosophy, I could actually join the dots in Theology , Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism
I remember an Uncle telling me to go to Babulnath temple every monday for a good husband. And this was the time I was eighteen and had seen the first guy. I started that and almost did not miss Babulnath for the next eleven years of my life. If I was out of town, I d visit any Shiva temple. I am glad I did that and I am happy and grateful that God listened to all my prayers. All the friends I had knew of this routine of mine and even colleagues. The Boss knew that when I left on sales calls on a monday, I was actually going to Babulnath. The colleagues who went that side on work would drop me to the temple. Once on a conference in Khajuraho, a colleague cum friend took me to the ancient Shiva temple in the precincts of the Khajuraho temples. During exams also I made it a point to visit. Once the festival of Holi fell on a monday and I still took a bus to go.Guy friends supported and came at early hours for Shivratri and the holy month of Sawaan for my temple visit. And No, I did not acquire any saintly qualities.
For years I never understood the meaning of all that I prayed. Our family was very serious about certain issues. God was one of them. No one was forced to pray or visit the temple. That came naturally to all of us. When we prayed, we prayed very seriously. Uncle was almost angry while praying. Mom and Gran wanted the servants to be at their beck n call while praying. So the servant ran to get the flowers, water milk, ghee, plates, sugar, hot milk, raw milk, cloth to wipe hands and more. The Puja room was nice , dark and cosy. Each one thought their praying and worshiping style was better. Someone lit agarbattis in all rooms, someone put lots of water in the Tulsi. But all of us were very significant in our actions. During vacations, I remember going around Vishnu n Tulsi at home all of 108 times. The Pandit was there for lunch on full moon, eleventh day of the lunar cycle and all other auspicious days. Then there would be saints visiting from different parts of the country.
When we went on trips, only religious songs and Garbas played in the car. Same at home. We d listen to Ramayan on cassettes by Murari Bapu. This was before the onset of tv in Dhanbad. Even then , none of us missed the Ramayan n Mahabharat on tv. Now when I read Devdutt Patnaik and his interpretations of mythology, I am amazed that my Gran had told me most of the stories and we had visited almost all the important religious places in India before we turned ten. All this was not a rule or discipline to be followed. All of this came naturally to the family. God was a part of us. We did pray and we got all that we prayed for.While majoring in philosophy, I could actually join the dots in Theology , Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism
I remember an Uncle telling me to go to Babulnath temple every monday for a good husband. And this was the time I was eighteen and had seen the first guy. I started that and almost did not miss Babulnath for the next eleven years of my life. If I was out of town, I d visit any Shiva temple. I am glad I did that and I am happy and grateful that God listened to all my prayers. All the friends I had knew of this routine of mine and even colleagues. The Boss knew that when I left on sales calls on a monday, I was actually going to Babulnath. The colleagues who went that side on work would drop me to the temple. Once on a conference in Khajuraho, a colleague cum friend took me to the ancient Shiva temple in the precincts of the Khajuraho temples. During exams also I made it a point to visit. Once the festival of Holi fell on a monday and I still took a bus to go.Guy friends supported and came at early hours for Shivratri and the holy month of Sawaan for my temple visit. And No, I did not acquire any saintly qualities.
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