"Dasara San motha/nahi Ananda tota" was the childhood rhyme that glorified Diwali the same way. Roughly it can be translated as "Dasara is a festival great/joy aplenty, and the best!" Yes, festivals create that happy, joyous, contented mood. Sure, it is a lot of hard work for the home maker. That is okay though. Tough, punishing schedules anyways are the norm, right?
When we were young, Aai-Papa celebrated every festival with lot of fervour. There was not any religiosity, but basic customs and traditions were followed to the t. Every Dasara, in the evening, Papa and us used to go to the Ganesh temple. Without fail, Aai used to perform the "औक्षण" when we returned. I remember very well the "himru" shawl, the "pat", the unique rangoli she used to draw with the wheat pearls.
We used to look forward to these rituals as much as the sweets and the new clothes. Not only were we told the traditional tales about the festivals, the reasons behind all the rituals were explained as well. Why, at home, the national festivals used to be celebrated as well!
We could never give a miss to the August 15 or January 26 parades, even when the school was some solid ten kilometers away. Moreover, back at home, we had to write essays, make speeches on all such occasions, including Tilak and Gandhi Jayanti. No wonder, I got the state level first prize for my essay on Tilak even when I was just a sixteen year old, and the other competitors were much, much older.
These days, however, festivals are mere buying sprees. Often, people choose to eat the festival special lunches in hotels, or buy these meals online. Most rituals are dismissed as mere superstitions. The dry "apta" leaves in the market these days are no patch on the beautiful handcrafted paper leaves, heart-shaped and golden-painted, that we made every Dasara.
No, I am not being nostalgic. My problem is with the consumerist mentality. I feel in the empty chase of false modernity dictated by the market forces, children today are missing on the lovely memories made during the childhood, and lasting a lifetime.
In such practices, moreover, lay a subtle concern for the environment, and for the basic agriculture oriented Indian lifestyle. Undue wastage was a no-no, too. Even today, I cannot thoughtlessly waste food, nor do i like electricity stupidly wasted. I cannot sleep with full a/c on, and two blankets!
No, I am absolutely not stingy. Quietly, i would spend quite a lot on social causes, though i might not wear tight jeans and tees with plunging necklines that leave nothing to imagination. The bindi on my forehead may make silly shallow fools believe that I am traditional, but most humbly I can state that my deep awareness and thorough knowlege of not only my discipline, but very many other subjects is most up to date!
In a way, traditions and customs craft such a holistic personality for us as indirectly values get instilled. I am eternally thankful and grateful to my parents who created for us a happy childhood filled with love and care.
Pratima@ Modernity is a complex phenomenon with a unique relationship with the tradition.
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