She came, she saw, He Conquered. Yet again :)

The gates opened. As he drove past the Lobby, he saw a beautifully decorated idol of Lord Ganesh. Today is the day when the entire country celebrates Ganesh Chaturthi. It is said to be his birthday. They say he is the one who listens to prayers. Across India, in most temples if not all, before devotees pay their obeisance to their revered God, the idol of Lord Ganesh sits omnipotent at the entrance. Such is his power and reverence.  

The various residents of the apartment complex had gathered down at the podium for the customary ‘Arti’ which would take place every day for the next 10 days. As he parked his car in the basement and climbed up the stairs to the podium, he decided to join the gathering for a few minutes. A thought in his head resonated ‘Come on man, you really don’t attend these Poojas and all, do you? You stopped believing in this particular God or that particular God sometime back, didn’t you? I mean what good is it to go to one particular God for doing well in your examinations and another for doing well in your professionally. What’s the point praying to one God to give you a good Wife and another to keep you in good health. ‘ . He dismissed the thoughts. Everyone had gathered around the idol of Lord Ganesha. There were sweets, some dried fruits and the usual Pooja thali.  And as usual, there was a lot of chattering (gosh, how much we Indians love chattering J ). There were at least 4-5 announcements of ‘ok, we are starting the Arti’. All of them were false starts.

He suddenly realized that there was a meeting due between someone and the Lord Himself. It hadn’t happened in almost 4 years and maybe it was about time. He excused himself from the gathering and took the elevator to his apartment. He strode in and told his mother, who was lying in bed, ‘Come on, you’re wanted downstairs.’ She frowned ‘For what? ‘ ‘Public demand, they want you to be a part of the Arti, so chalo, let’s go’. She refused at first ‘I’m not coming! Not in the mood to attend an Arti’ She seemed adamant but he insisted, rather rudely, ‘Listen, don’t act difficult, there are at least 3-4 people downstairs who have asked about you, so you better come, it’ll be worth your while.’ Sometimes, being assertive to the point of being rude is the only way out. She didn’t say anything. Getting up and walking to the wheelchair was getting easier for her now as her health had improved in the past few weeks. it was still a challenging task, though. She wrapped her shawl around herself using the one functional hand that she had and slowly moved towards the wheelchair using her walker.

It had been so long since she had attended an Arti. She felt numb. After all, throughout her life, the Lord was always with her and she knew that He was always watching over her and her loved ones. Be it in her handbag, on her desk, in her room, in the Car, He was always there. And yet, as she suffered one mishap after another all He did was watch. She was bitter, hurt, weak, broken and battered by all the misfortune she had suffered in the form of bad health. First the fractures, then the Brain stroke which rendered her right side almost useless, then the knee gave way, and earlier in the year, she had contacted some nasty infections which took months to heal. Why me? She would often ask looking up with a sense of abandonment. Anger would swell up within her and over time a sense of sadness and disappointment enveloped her. It almost seemed like a vicious permanent embrace. What would she do when she saw The Lord now? What would she say to Him? Would she break down? Would she maintain a stony silence? What would she do?

As her son wheeled her out of the elevator and onto the podium, she was warmly greeted by everyone. The Arti has started and everyone was clapping to the hymns that were being sung in the name of Lord Ganesh. She sat on the wheelchair, her eyes closed, having her private conversation with Him, no doubt. The plate was then passed on to her and after an initial bit of hesitation, she held the plate in front of Him and started circling it around the idol. A solitary tear rolled down as she completed three cycles clockwise and anti-clockwise. She handed back the plate to the next person in the gathering and softly cried out ‘Thank you’. Her conversation with Him had ended. Or had it been re-initiated? As she began interacting with the others, it appeared as though all the remorse, bitterness and sadness seemed to have been dissolved. The smile was back on her face. She was busily discussing weekend plans with the others and had some ‘prasad’ as well. 

When it was time to go, she promised the gathering that she would come on all days. All 10 days! As he wheeled her back up, her son asked her ‘So, glad you came?’ She immediately beamed ‘Absolutely!!! Very glad to see Him again. After all this while’. He smiled to himself. He didn’t ask her about what she prayed or whether she had a conversation with the Lord. He knew that was a strictly private matter and was off limits even for him. Didn’t matter though. What mattered was that she came. What mattered was that she saw. And what mattered was that He conquered. He conquered her fears, her sadness and her sense of inevitability. Yet again J