my face by itself.
Glazed flush red eyes, shaky legs, swaying and not
able to speak, listening but not understanding, hearing but not
registering, touching but not feeling, sorry but not repentant, I
was sitting like a dumb-stone gazing at him.
‘You saw the girl, now you get ready,’ Vinay
said.
‘They have already spent thousands of rupees for it,’
another one added.
I wanted to rewind the film back to the beginning to
re-edit my life, but I was too late and too much incapable because
the time didn’t give me any chance. Feeling embarrassed and
crippled, I was left to suffer in the miserable circumstance. But
the worst was yet to come. And for Vinay, That was his business.
Such a worst activity he was involved in! Such a stupid family who
gave money to abduct me! Such a death of humanity, and rape of
culture! So absurd the state Bihar!
Despite getting angry to abuse him, I kept quite
controlling the bubbling ill-feeling. At any end of the spectrum,
such an act can definitely denigrate the greatness and the goodness
of the society, culture and religion. I cursed myself being a Hindu
at that moment, because no other religion in the world would allow
that kind of marriage to take process. And I cursed myself to be
born among those bastards.
Seeing their shocking ignorance and cruelty, my faith
to be faithless strengthened, and so, I disown the excuses of some
smooth-tongue barkers who even today say that it was not the fault
of the religion. If it wasn’t, then why did the other villagers not
object the mishap? Were they all blind or weak in front of a few
criminals? And with what faith the pundit was worshiping the
God?
The fact was that, they had the habit of submitting
themselves to injustice. Months later, my brother also commented
saying that kidnapping is not unusual.
He said, ‘It happens.’
Then I asked, ‘If I were your sister, would you say
the same?’
I asked him with caps-lock tone that made his mouth
shut. The stupidity was not only in the criminals or the family who
kidnapped me; the stupidity was and is in the society. Some people
will see this as an attempt to justify or excuse comments that are
simply inexcusable. The issue that I raise here humanity cannot
afford to ignore otherwise it will distort human existence.
Understanding this reality requires a reminder of what kind of
culture prevails there. The past isn't dead and buried. In fact, it
isn't even past. We do not need to recite here the history of
injustice in the country. But we do need to remind ourselves that
so many of the disparities that exist in the country are gifted to
the new generation from the earlier one.
The hogwash ceremony had already begun. The women had
started singing folk songs and the rituals got into process. It was
going to be midnight. While sitting inside, I looked above though a
hole in the thatch. The one thing I noticed – the sky was getting
cloudier. The process had started in a small open space surrounded
with some huts. I thought – Just for saying they are Brahmins, the
highest caste of Hinduism. But they are doing the work of beasts.
Who gave them the designation of Brahmin? And if this is
Brahmanism, which is considered the creator of morals and ethics of
Hindu religion, then it is barbarous satanic cult which is letting
the bastardization of marriage happen.
“When richness breaks a rule, it is called a
reformation. When poverty breaks a rule, it is called a crime.”
Chapter Seven
“If you are not willing to risk the unusual, you will
have to settle for the ordinary.” –Jim Rohn
The girl was brought to the altar and it was my turn
to go. I heard the call of the pundit. The same two sons of the
bitches came to take me there. I sat on the ground in a small piece
of sheet beside the girl. The pundit started speaking mantras, and
with a complete desperation I turned my eyes to look at the blue
heaven again.
As I was looking at the