Wednesday, March 21, 2018

Forgive us, Mahabali

The Hindu mythology I grew up with was the old version rooted in the lands south of  the Vindhyas. In these stories, there were the three levels of  people- the gods  in their heaven, the people on earth, and the Asuras in the netherworld- just as in the Gangetic Plain version of the stories.

But the North Indian version is strictly in black and white, and the South Indian version is in a glorious mix of greys. And this brings us to Mahabali, whose story is my favourite Diwali legend. Mahabali, the Great Bali, was a good and great King. So good, in fact, that his subjects no longer sang the praises of the gods or propitiate them with sacrifices. Angered by this,the gods sent Vishnu to kill him, which Vishnu managed by using Bali's goodness against him. At the end, Bali knew what Vishnu was upto. But rather than go back on his word, Bali allowed Vishnu to send him to the underworld. He requested only one boon- that he be allowed to return for one night every year and check on the wellbeing of those he loved.

And so on one night, for the last few thousand years, a loving king walks across his land visiting his people. And his people? Well, they know that while Bali is concerned about them, he also cannot help them trapped as he is. Rather than sadden him, they want to make his one night here a happy one. And so, no matter how financially worried or sad we might be for the rest of the year, on Narak Chaturdashi we put a happy face on matters. Every family, no matter how poor,has something sweet in the house. The houses are lit up with even those in mourning keeping a lamp lit that night. And i have always loved this concept, of the whole country conspiring across centuries to hide their unhappiness to reassure someone they love.

However in recent years, the mythology of the Gangetic plains has become the dominant one and we are losing all the regional festival stories. I was grieved two years ago when my mother told me, with tears in her eyes, that the people of Sawantwadi has begun to follow the North Indian custom of burning an effigy of Narak Raja (as Bali is known there) and abusing him as an Asura.I was sad too, but there was at least the reassurance that my mother and I welcomed Bali with love.

And today, when my mother and I were talking, she began to insist that Bali was an oppressive king, that he laid waste to farms and forests, that Vishnu did a good thing by killing him. At an intellectual level, I am angry about the rise of a dominant narrative that is overruling the many complex stories that the Hinduism I grew up with. But I have realised  that a part of me always believed  in Bali,and that part is deeply grieved at what he must feel when he visits us these days.

So sorry, Mahabali, forgive us.

Saturday, March 17, 2018

Rain!

Our little village is supposed to have one-two weeks of snow in the winter, and a week or so of rain in February. This winter, we had half a day with a light smattering of snow, and two days of rain. Last night, we had another day of rain.
And of course, a day of gentle rain in middle march means all the seeds hear the starter's pistol. When the dogs and I walked in the garden today morning, we saw many self-sown seeds- borage, parsley, sunflower, marigold that had emerged overnight.
And with everything sparkling and lush, it is a good time to share six things from the kitchen garden for this Saturday.
But first, a peek at the orchard.

1. There's vetch there, and clover, and grass. And despite that, the hens still prefer to scratch around in my seedlings. So every morning I walk them to the garden, and every morning, they follow me back home. But they are very scenic.


2. Potatoes. I have never planted them before. Actually, I haven't planted them yet. Mian wanted home grown potatoes, and G wanted to please Mian. And so one day I walked out to see G planting potatoes from his store.

3. Peas. These I definitely had a hand in planting. I used the last handful of last year's peas yesterday. Now it is time for more. These are just thinking of setting flower buds.

4. Lettuce. Merveille De Quatre Saisons. and truly a Merveille. This is our third year of planting them and they never fail to please. With a bit of frost cover, they keep chugging along through the winter, and are just beginning to bolt. Need to eat them up then.

5. Tomatoes! Brinjal! Chillies! All seed I had saved (except the brinjal). And now they are just beginning to sprout under their covers.

6. Garlic. And self-sown coriander. The garden gnomes alone know where the coriander came from, but I don't mind at all.

The 'six-on-saturday' meme is hosted by The Propagator. In his words, it's "Six things, in the garden, on a Saturday. Could be anything – a flower, a pest, a success, a project, a plan, an abject failure – anything at all!" So if you want to find out what's happening in other gardens, do go on over to his blog!