Shoshti

Today is the 6th day following he advent of the Devi (Durga) on Mahalaya. And Shoshti is the day the Durga Puja celebrations begin officially. As children we used to look forward to this day so that we could wear our new clothes and show them off at the Pandals where they'd be putting finishing touches to the idols -- Durga and her four children: Laxmi, the goddess of fortune; Saraswati, the goddess of learning; Kartik, the god of war and Ganesh, the elephant-headed god of wealth. Those were fun days and even now when one hears the sound of the "dhak", the drums one feels nostalgic.

Probably because I'm not 100% Bengali, I don't go ga-ga over this particular festival. Oh yes, I do look back in nostalgia. But I rarely get emotionally involved in the celebrations as most people in the eastern states do. I do visit the pandals and/or to listen to the drums or watching young men (and these days women) performing "arati". Inadvertently I also notice the beautiful sarees and gold ornaments that a lot of women wear and sometimes men too! And when I step out of the pandal and watch the ragged children and old men and women who sit in the shadows waiting to be noticed and given alms, I feel very bad indeed.

I know tha I'm a bit of a spoilsport these days. I see too much that is wrong these days. Everything is not bad. These festivals also provide employment and provide a boost to commercial activities. And perhaps for a few days, those very ragged beggars are assured of alms or perhaps a square meal? But I somehow I see the ostentatious and conspicuous spending by a few people. And I also wonder at the community that funds such celebrations. Most of these religious events -- Ganesh Chaturthi in Maharashtra, Navratri in Gujarat, Durga Puja in Bengal -- are based on community participation and contribution. Sadly, they are also temporary -- the idols will be immersed, the the pandals dismantled and most of the tinsels and baubles dispersed and scattered all over the place along with plastic bags, paper plates etc. etc.

I wonder why the money and the effort that goes into such celebrations can't be channelized into making something more permanent? Can't the community collect donations to build a school instead of a temple and then celebrate their achievement? Can't the community collect enough money to put a poor student through college and then celebrate his/her success? We'd probably end up having year round celebrations then. And I'm sure it would also be environment friendly!

I wish the women would talk about how much money they have spent on giving sarees to the have-nots rather than brag about the number of sarees they have bought for themselves and how expensive they are! Such expensive sarees are rarely worn and they certainly do not add to wealth accumulation like gold that can  and is a "nest egg". Would it not be so much nices if one wears a nice saree and also ensures that those families where all the women share ONE SAREE have more sarees to go around?

Ah well, I could go on and on and on. I'm already running into trouble with the locals because I am refusing to give donations. To most I am saying that I'll contribute generously when they ask me to donate for building a school or repairing an old woman's hut... They don't like it. They want to "celebrate" -- spend money on "band party", "booze", and "babes".

Celebrate by all means. We celebrate Diwali on the project. We burst crackers collectively so that all the kids can enjoy equally and the community too. But most of the money is spent of providing sweets to the children. My daughter doesn't approve of the cracker part. Every year she points out to me that these crackers are made by "slave children" who toild from dawn to dusk in dingy rooms to produce them. I agree with her. That's why only a small amount is spent on crackers manufactured by companies that don't employ child labour (or at least they say they don't). For me, it's more a question of bringing some joy into the lives of rural children who will never get to fly a kite or experience the thrill of holding a "sparkler" in their hands or bursting a cracker and jump with joy at the bang. So you see, I have nothing against celebration. I become a child for a few hours on Diwali night on the project. But I feel extremely ambivalent during Durga Puja and that's the main reason why I don't "celebrate".

Having said all that let me also say that I will definitely visit a pandal or two and see how well the idols have been decorated. I am also hoping to visit a "village puja" which, I've heard is celebrated the traditonal way without any ostentations. I'm hoping to spend time with my friends and also perhaps catch up on some reading while everyone is too busy to spare time for a single old man.

There's no Durga Puja holiday on the project. It will be class as usual. The kids and the staff (Bhola and Shanku) may go and "enjoy" in Devdand on one of these festive days. But I'm not sure that will happen. Bhola's grandmother died last night and when I spoke to him this morning, he was in a bus on his way to the Ganges at Rajmahal to cremate her. The bus had been chartered for this purpose. I couldn't help wondering aloud about the expenses and he admitted that his grandmother's death would set his family back by at least 50 to 60 thousand rupees. The cost of taking her body to Rajmahal for cremation would cost no less than 20,000 rupees! And then there is the "shradh" ceremony -- a community feast which will cost a lot more as the whole village and ALL those related will have to be invited. No wonder there is rural poverty! Even the poorest of the poor have to perform some social "obligations" during births, deaths and of course marriages.

They don't have to. But then there's always peer pressure and the need to conform and belong and also show off. Bhola's family could easily have cremated his grandmother anywhere -- a forest, their backyard or any water body and then taken her ashes to a "holy place" anyway along the Ganges to be scattered. But the trend must have been started by someone who wanted to show the community how much they "loved" their departed and how much money he was willing to spend to have that person cremated on the banks of the Ganges. Now others have a "standard" to maintain. According to Bhola only those who can "afford" it, do this. Well, it seems everyone in Devdand can "afford" it by either mortgaging their homes and land or by selling whatever little jewellery the wife has.

The death of Bhola's grandmother is not being treated as sad news because she was really very, very old and bed-ridden. She could not be moved and had to be spoon fed. Bhola's father would do that and he was becoming quite resentful of this chore. So I'm sure everyone is relieved that she's gone. And I'm sure she's now at rest. But the timing is all bad. Now the family won't be able to celebrate Durga Puja. The men women and children won't be able to wear new clothes. And they won't be able to participate in any social rites or rituals for the next 13 days. Also, no participation in any festival till next year. That is sad news indeed.