Part
3:
I
know money is going to be a major hindrance.
In our land we have plantain trees.
Interestingly plantain tree is the only tree where all its parts are
used. Not only this, if you cut a bigger
tree, another one will grow up in the same place. Unless one removes the tube below the earth,
the plantain tree will continue to grow and will continue to yield. The stem of plantain tree is very good for
health. It has the capacity to dissolve
kidney stones. Banana fruits are so good
for health and couple of fruits makes a complete filling. Leaves are used as plate. The outer stem of a plantain tree is used to
carry those who are injured in fire accidents.
Every part of the tree is used for different purpose. It is a selfless, soft and gentle tree. The growth of banana trees is often compared
to one’s lineage like grandfather, father, son, etc. If one banana tree had yielded fruits, it is
cut off and another tree grows without any human intervention.
I
know that four of my plantain trees would have ripe fruits shortly. Fruits should be allowed to ripe in the tree
itself. It is not advisable to cut the
fruits before natural ripening. Such fruits will lose original taste and
secondly will also partially lose their nutrient factors. Cutting the fruits
before ripening is like performing a C-section instead of natural
delivery. Performing C-sections for the
convenience of the doctors is one of the worst sins, for which there are no
remedial measures available, as they play with God’s exclusive act. I know a merchant, who regularly buys all the
yields of my land. He is a nice guy and
he procures yields from people like us and sells them to another person near
the town. He gives me twenty five bucks
for a bunch of banana and sells to the merchant in the town at thirty five
bucks. The merchant in turn sells to a
wholesaler who has several trucks shunting between major cities and this place
and makes a profit of twenty bucks. The
wholesaler buys at fifty five bucks from the merchant and sells to retailers at
ninety bucks. Retailer sells one banana
fruit for five bucks. A bunch normally
consists of seventy fruits. One bunch which I sell at twenty five bucks is
finally sold at five bucks per fruit. I
used to wonder why the growers are not selling directly to the consumers. Every
intermediary makes money except the farmer who really works hard to make his
money and the consumer who struggles to meet both ends meet. If both of them are directly linked, consumer
could save a lot of money and the farmer can make more money. Only hard work should be rewarded. He can invest this money to build
infrastructure of the nation. People are
not willing to think. If you think
logically, you cannot make money. I feel
sad only for the farmer and the consumer.
The intermediaries simply make their money without hard work.
Providentially,
the guy came next morning. I sold four
bunches banana and collected one hundred bucks from him, went to the nearby
town and purchased small quantities of cement, sand, paint, etc. The whole thing cost me eighty five bucks
with only fifteen bucks left for me to return to my place. I procured all the materials, placed in a
gunny bag and returned home. My mother
looked at the gunny bag and of course did not ask any questions. For the first time, there was a mysterious
happiness in me. May be because, I have
not done anything seriously like this before.
I have decided to renovate the temple and the idol of Ganapati,
beginning tomorrow. I slept well that
night. When I woke up, the sun was ready
to rise. Normally, I would have taken my
bath by this time. I saw my mother
preparing food for the day. I could
notice her ageing process. She does not walk without any hold. She knows that we do not have money to get
treatment. I always thought that rich
and poor should not live together, as the poor is bound to develop inferiority
complex. She told me several times that
I should not admit her in a hospital if she becomes sick. My father also died at home. I am seriously concerned
about her. I am not in the habit of asking for favours from God. I always believe that God knows what to give
and when. For the first time, I prayed
to God to give my mother, a good health.
Without my knowing, tears rolled down my cheeks. There are several firsts happening to me this
time. I could realize that there is some subtle change happening within. There is always a sort of inexplicable
happiness within.
Probably
I should have woken up much earlier than my usual time of waking up. If I decide to wake up early, I tell my mind
that I should get up at a particular time.
I will get up exactly at that time which I have told my mind. I tested the capacity of my mind several
times. When I tell my mind that Jimmy
should not accompany me to the river for bath, he will not come with me. When I tell my mind that yoga teacher should
not be there on a particular day, he will not be there, when I go to his
place. With such experiments, I found
that mind can do wonders, provided it is trained properly. I always keep my mind calm. Occasionally some thoughts might come and go,
but they do not bother me. At times I used to feel for my disinterest in
studies. However, I am not too
concerned with my food. When I am
hungry, I go the Cauvery River and drink water.
Water is the best source not only to quench thirst, but also satiating
your hunger. It is the best medicine to
keep the body clean, healthy and trim.
After
having my bath, I walked towards the Ganapati temple along with all the materials
that I had procured yesterday. I was
very upset that the temple has escaped my attention all these days. I looked at Ganapati, seated pathetically
inside the temple. He remained uncared
for with cobweb and dirt around him.
When I looked at him with concern, I had a feeling that he smiled at me.
My mother had told me lots of stories about Ganapati. He removes all obstacles and hence he is
worshiped before starting any activities.
Even other gods are worshipped only after worshipping him. He is called
elephant god. There is a story about his
elephant face. There was a fight between Ganapati and Shiva and in the fight
Ganapati’s head was chopped off. At the
request of his mother Parvati, his father Shiva fixed an elephant’s head. There are other stories also about his
elephant head.
I
felt ashamed for having ignored the temple.
I cannot compare myself with other boys around, as they go to school in
the next village. None of them speak to
me or play with me. They all believe
that I am uncultured, uneducated rustic boy.
But I know most of these boys by name.
They do not even take bath, get up late and go to school in a hurry.
They do not have the knowledge I have gained over the years. I am of the opinion that education is nothing
to do with one’s knowledge. I know that
I am clean and tidy than these boys.
Even the best of men with a lot of self-confidence sometimes are hurt
when they are snubbed. I sorted out all
things and prepared for painting the outer wall. I scrapped the outer wall and gave a first
coat. The temple looked better now. I wanted to paint inside the temple. But the idol of Ganapati is there and if I
paint, the paint could fall on him and his half black colour could become half
white. I went to my home and collected
old dhotis of my father and covered Ganapati idol and began painting
inside. When I finished, the outer wall
had absorbed all the paint. I repainted
both the outer wall and inner wall again.
Now the temple looked very bright.
When I finished, it was time for my lunch. I make it a point to have my lunch with my
mother after my father’s death. We cannot afford to have good meals on all
days. It depends upon what we get from
our land. I grow almost all vegetables
for our use. I sell the surplus and keep
cash for emergency. My main cultivation
is paddy. When it is harvested, I keep couple of gunny bags of paddy for our
use and sell the rest. I do not spend anything on myself. When I returned, I saw mother waiting for me
outside our house and looked at me surprisingly. She could be wondering why I began painting
the temple walls.
(to
be continued)
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