Blinded by faith

A good old friend of mine, who shares the same sentiments on folklore and godliness was determined to brave the sun yesterday on Thaipoosam. She tagged me along and assured me that I am going to enjoy it!!  ‘Thaipoosam’ as the name goes is the Lunar month ‘Thai’(January/February) and the rasi ‘Poosam’ on this very day when Parvati gave Murugan a Vel(spear) so he could vanquish the evil demon Soorapadman. There is a misconception among people that Thaipoosam marks Murugan's birthday! Anyways never mind the misconceptions! Life has many alike!

The Perumal temple had a scintillating atmosphere and all the people thronged around the various ‘Kavadi’ bearers to get them started. Each one had a startling story to see! The spears all pierced and adorned with the bright golden and earthy Indian colors! It was a feast to watch the preparation. The men had to stand holding a pole while the helpers tied the dhothi piece around his hip till he could bearly breathe. Absolutely tight to ensure a low blood flow and after which the various piercings started . The nerves were skipped and pierced. One definitely needed to know body science in way that even the practicing doctors may not know. No blood drips at all!!

Checking for the nerves and piercing

Adjusting the spears

The kaavadi bearer almost prepared

It’s the ‘faith’ my friend said and having watched this ritual from the age of 8, I would love to believe that this knowledge of faith by conviction is the essence of this self-infliction!! But to me Science is very closely related to Religion and while I will keep to the sentiments of the crowd I saw yesterday, I still cannot help be speculative about this!

The walk itself was a few kilometers long and we started by noon. The sun blazing right above, the streets all resounding with folk music being sung aloud on hand mics. The kavadi bearer was the centre of all the noise but the dancers beside him definitely kept him entertained. Numerous stalls with water, juice and food were stationed to keep the people going on this religious journey. It’s a big community that comes together in faith and culture.

Many worshipped him too!

Bright earthy colours caught my eye

The entire traffic rolled by slowing near every kavadi bearers to check out the details of his piercings! There were chariots of favourite gods and family deities being pulled by the rope that was pierced on the bearer’s back! Slippers with 1000 nails, numerous danglings on a back, spears on the tongue and I must say that innovation was at its best! Apart from the spears  their tattoos said a million stories more.

The 1000 nails slippers

Quite bravely worn

When the long walk to the Tank road Dhandayuthapani temple ended, the temple had the Lord Murugan continuously engaged in prayers and an unlimited milk abhishekam(shower)! The darshan was absolutely satisfying! Many of them fainted and regained consciousness soon! It was a day of high energy and utmost faith and religious manifestation too!

The Dhandayuthapani temple

Trials and tribulations of life help strengthen spirits! It surely strengthens religious beliefs and brings an assured positive energy to people who have the real faith! The piercing and cutting may not make for any rationality but it still reiterates a very traditional Hindu belief that everything big is achieved only by hardships! Conversely, nothing achieved easily has ever lasted is the belief. Self-infliction of this kind just goes a little further to prove the Hindu wheel of karma!

The day ended with a lot of discussion on people and cultures with my family. My husband and me went with an empty trolley to the nearby 24 hour shop to get the Amul milk carton for a fortnight. The shopkeeper said with a smile, “I have run out of milk today. Please come 2 days later”. A smile escaped my husband’s lips as well! We walked back with an empty trolley but knew that many people today would have gone home with a full heart !

Unfailing silence

It was a school trip that took me to that part of the world. It was an island resort and in that sense only the resort. Many a times in our frenzied lives we all dream of an absolutely quiet and serene place for a holiday. My husband often made fun of my excitement to the thought of a quiet sunrise, beaches and wood houses. Well I really got around to see something of that sort.

These were silhouettes chalets. The nights were filled with an occasional frog sticking on the wooden basement making noises, the sound of the quiet waves, a stillness that kept me wondering if that moment qualified the Quietest Moment of my life!!

The view outside my room.

 

Everyday, there, dawned with a riot of colours that painted the sky with unbelievable beauty. As we reluctantly stirred out to catch the first morning rays, all of us had a camera capturing whatever caught the eye! The colours it cast in the sea were unique and definitely rolled into kaleidoscopes that we never saw before! As the sun screamed through the day, a quiet in the hammock was the most eventful part of the day! It was a day to do nothing and we did just that.

the view of the chalets from the hammock

An excited lot, took videos of the hermit crabs that went about the shore with such industrious work! Its their living that fascinated us! They moved all the time in a swarm(an army in my opinion)! They made funny dunes on the shore where the waves hit the shore tirelessly! Sort of like the chocolate icing(brown sand!) on the cake! Quite artistically weaved on fine sand. No pictures of these as am very scared of crabs and never went near them!

The evenings brought us on the deck where in the pretext of fishing we sat chatting and never took our eyes off the horizon. We hardly caught fish bit did end up jumping of the jetti into the sea. It certainly was the most exciting part of the day! Everyone talked about how the pit of their stomachs took a turn when they descended into the sea!

The sun slowly and steadily set leaving the rest of the day to be feasted by stars.  The setting sun had a beauty for me like none other. It metaphorically meant different things on different days! Loved the colours and the spell it casted on the lonely boats that floated near the deck. I cannot remember how many different pictures I would have clicked of the boat and the walk way!

walkway

the deck before we sat fishing.

the boat that was the subject of a 100 pictures

my favourite shot

end of day

Star gazing after dinner was a ritual everyone waited for. To lie flat on  the deck staring into the sky to understand the North star, the Archer’s sword, The constellation and the of course the bright evening star. The Orion and such else with their mythological stories made sense when you searched for them with an App on the iphone!

The day normally ended late with chatting about Philosophy, contemporary issues and religion. Of course a coffee that was specially brewed and had an aroma that kept lingering through the conversations and had no effect on the deep slumber we all went into when we retired to bed.

It’s the air, the sentiments, the total lack of intentions to do purposeful things, the lazing and the beauty of quiet all around that gave the day a special dash of happiness! The only thought I had on those few days on such a routine was a small pang of greediness to bring my man and girl back here to have the same experiences with them! Something about that thought was not appropriate in the context of ‘asking for more’ in life but must admit was a thought pregnant with determination to make it actually true!! Oh the human mind!! Never failing to ask!!