Early
morning every day as I leave for office, I come across my neighbour who I invariably
find busy in feeding ants, his five year old son in tow. He is a software
engineer in a multinational company. On
way to office I come across many other such commuters. Some even stop their car
and step out to feed a cow or a black dog. Feeding partridges and crows are also
quite common. Delhi has places earmarked for such purpose. This is the same
hip-hop Delhi that considers it progressive and modern, a city said to be
leading the nation in a self-styled manner which also considers it to be India’s
window to the world. Feeding birds, cows and stray dogs is not bad as long as
this is done with a genuine concern and compassion for fellow creatures. But it
isn’t the case. Such compassion and care stem from a deep sense of insecurity by
people leading a life full of stress and strained relations. Every Saturday
there is an addition to this show in the form of Lord Sani (Saturn). Children of poverty stricken people, for whom the
pavements are their dwelling, scare the regular commuters into paying up a good
amount as alms to get rid of the ire of Lord Sani. These children can be seen at any traffic-signal, carrying the
image of Lord Sani immersed in oil in
a bucket, seeking alms in the name of Lord Sani.
And people readily oblige- their
progressive views and their modern outlook notwithstanding. If you observe the
number of commuters who oblige these pavement dwellers, one would get a feel
that the whole of Delhi is in the grip of the saadhe saati (the seven year period of Sani) or the dhaiya of sani
(2 ½ years period of Sani) of Lord Sani who is dreaded even more than one’s
boss. It only signifies the level of stress that has become a part of
life of people in Delhi. Such stressful lifestyle also provides a fertile
ground to modern Guru to strive, who extracts maximum benefits of this fear and
stress. They prescribe all sorts of remedies including those mentioned above. A
Guru must not draw fear but love and compassion. I am reminded of the teachings
of Lord Buddha on this Buddha
Purnima, who had asked his followers to be their own light (Appo
Deepo Bhava) because He believed that it was near impossible to find a
real Guru in this Kalyug. “Guru
keejye jaan ke, paani peejye chhan ke” (Accept a Guru only after
knowing him well and drink water only after filtering it properly)- an advice given
even by Ramkrishna Paramhans to his noted disciple Swami Vivekananda.
Human being should never consider him weak
to seek solace in such quick fix solution to his problems from quacks moving
around in the name of Guru. One must have faith in God and His divine justice who
only will give us the strength to overcome the stress and strains of life as it
unfolds before us. If only we raise our faith in God to this level shall we be able to achieve
real peace in our life.
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