It was the day after Maha Shivratri after
temple hopping of the ancient temples in and around Trichy in the great night
of Shiva. My sister and I set out to offer our worship to Lord Vishnu at
Srirangam, close
to Trichy.
After a fulfilling darshan of Sriranganathar coupled with tasty
nibbles of the Prasad-pulisadham (tamarind rice) and thayirsadham (curd rice),
we got into the car. As we engaged ourselves in a conversation waiting for the
driver to return, a Sadhu approached us.
He passed off easily as a traditional Indian Sadhu, clad in
ochre robes. He had flowing hair and wore Kumkum on his forehead.
It was beyond doubt that he approached us for alms; we
casually handed out some money. There was a faint but a sure sign of gratitude
on his face. He then immediately turned around and lifted both his hands above
his head at the temple tower in adoration of the Lord and walked away quietly. This
could seem as just another ordinary act of adoration of the Lord…. May be the
money that he received could be enough for a meal that day. Perhaps he did not
have to make a few more rounds of asking for alms.
But, as I mused, I was struck by the sense of the surrender
and gratitude that he exuded. That simple act conveyed various things. To
totally depend on God amidst total uncertainty portrayed humility and wisdom that one can learn from such expressions in daily life.
Furthermore I felt relieved that I wasn’t judgmental about his
tidy appearance before handing him the money. We usually
gauge a person with preset parameters before we give alms. We
check for physical disability, age and strength in order to determine whether
he/she is capable of working to fend for himself. I felt physical disability
may be visible to judging eyes, but pain within, which needs to be understood most
often lies camouflaged by a trim and tidy look.
A little more sensitivity would ease out hidden pains.
Random musings.
Picture Courtesy: Sonu Agvan
www.unsplash.com
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