Hitting the road, the spotless white Indigo danced to the tunes of the convoluted serpentine road which twisted and turned on its whims and fancies. Watching the world move behind me, I was spoiling myself in the plush leather seats as my ipod was playing its 1GB magic in my ears. Waging an authoritative altercation I was successful in disapproving the list of topics carefully chosen by dad & mom and let sleep creep in their exhausted minds to prepare them for the next round of lists which I would certainly disapprove of. Though I realize, mental paradigms could not be changed in just wink of an eye, most of the times, I feel quite sad and stupid as my parents fail to understand the needless pain they invite upon them in the name of religion, belief and superstition. This is one such “pilgrimage” for my parents in their pursuit of a heavenly after-life while I was enjoying their presence and living the current moment to my heart’s content.
Starting with a holy dip in Nala Theertham of Thirunallar (a temple for Saturn god) in a belief that it would make us devoid of all the future ill-luck, the trip un-winded as we visited Thirupampuram (Kingdom of Serpents), AnandhaMangalam, Swamimalai(A place for the war god Karthikeya), Uppaliyappan and Vaitheeswaran Kovil. Curious to know about the stories made around these temples I had started to collect the documented history(Thiruthala Varalaru) and was busy criticizing the well cooked up stories while my mom was fuming in fear that their mighty God might punish me.
All throughout the trip, I was quite successful in winning never ceasing arguments with dad and was brimming with pride for having exhibited glimpses of my analytical brain. Turning impatient, as I could see my dad enjoying the defeat, I was determined to humiliate him further and chose to discuss about the core of their beliefs – FAITH. Questioning their faith and their obsolete religion I was close in winning another battle until my dad uttered his closing sentences in his own unique style. FAITH IS ALL THAT KEEPS US MOVING AND ALIVE. IT IS THE ONLY LINK BETWEEN MAN & MAN and MAN & GOD. ONE WHO LOSES FAITH LOSES EVERYTHING. I found the answer convincing, and for the first time in the trip, I was defeated but yet felt the real joy in losing to my loved one and having rediscovered a known fact. Silence crept in and dad went back to his hibernating mode while my mind was furiously thinking about the truth in the fact called FAITH. I could see the world moved past as the Indigo cruised along in the road more traveled.
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When you question people's faith you question their basic belief system. It disconcerts them. Some get angry, some get confused and some just go on keeping their faith.
Your father had just reiterated a well-heard-of concept. Even then, it was good to hear, like reading a favorite book again.
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