The Gora Beggar, and after that...

There is one image that i can never forget- that of a white (a gora, a Westerner) beggar on the steps of Har ki Pairi in Hardwar, India. He was filthy in his appearance- matted hair, dirty clothes, long beard, and long nails- and was begging for food from a fellow beggar. The fellow beggar treated him with respect, as is the tendency in the ex-colonies of the British Empire (first reaction: the colour of the skin still gets more respect than the merit of the person).

 The only thing that came to my mind was a string of questions:

 "Why is he here? How is he here? Where has he come from? Has he lost his passport? Why did he choose to beg here instead of going home, where he was born and brought up and work like normal people? Is this his spiritual journey? Or has he gone mad en route?"

I have no clue what happened to him thereafter. But that image has never left my mind. The West comes to the East thinking and seeking spiritual peace and happiness. Was this really his quest for peace that landed him on those holy steps and led him to begging?

To me, the only reason people in the East seem more contented and happy is because of our faith system. We place our trust, besides God, in our rivers, stones, trees, animals- anything and everything. Ganga, among many others, is a holy river; even though we lack the civic sense to keep our rivers clean in the first place. Our Gods use various animals as their vehicles, so we come to respect them automatically- be it Nandi, the bull; Mooshak, the mouse; Sher, the lion of the Lion goddess; or the snake, the ornament around Lord Shiva’s neck….

We believe that someone out there, our revered God or Goddess is looking after us. It is the same faith the kids have in their parents. Our daily life reflects our faiths. We pray, we 'fast', we do rituals, we believe in magical powers of that black thread, or the black mark on the forehead to ward off the evil eye, we believe in the all-healing powers of our Gods more than we believe the doctors or science or anything man made.

It is the healing power of faith that helps people survive in the middle of abject poverty, extreme hunger, deprivation, and disease. It is that faith that someday, in this life or the next; everything is going to be alright. In fact, as a part of our faith system, we even ‘bribe’ God! Unbelievable as it may sound,  we do it so regularly-

“If I score an A-grade in this exam, I will come to your temple for the next 4 Mondays!” (Or, Tuesdays, or Fridays...)

“If my blood test reports all come out fine, I am going to light a diya (the prayer lamp) in front of You every day.”

“If I get this contract, I am going to do a big ‘Jagrata’ (an overnight celebration of the Goddess’ powers by singing devotional songs) in your honour, dear Goddess.”

“If this family says ‘Yes’ for my daughter, I am going to give langar (free food) to all the beggars in the town.”

“I am going to fast for 16 Mondays so I get a good husband.”

“If you do this, I will come bare feet to your temple…”

We negotiate with God, we try to lure Him by making our promises to return His favours, we fight with Him when He does not do as we thought He would or He should, we question Him when we are doubting our faith practices, but in the end, we believe in Him and His intentions and we hope He will take us through all the tests that He presents us with in the first place.

As I continue my own quest for peace, I understand that that faith helps me let go of my tensions- and i put it on Him to look after me once again- it is really as simple as that...