Original in Telugu - Munipalle Raju
Translator – GRK Murty
Paddy threshing is not over all through the village. Having received
a message from uncle, applying leave for the college, I came home by bus. And
that very next night this frightful incident happened.
* * *
It was Bahula trayodasi [1].
Like a lion’s claw, the biting chill of Dhanurmasam [2]
has tightened its grip. The darkness has spread its might right at
the twilight. The blinking stars, peering timidly through the dark sky have suddenly
vanished as if frightened by the devilish whistle of the mail on the faraway railway
track.
Finishing his dinner, Pedananna
garu [3], walking
to and fro on the long pial in front of the house, is reciting Jaimini
Mahabharat [4] in
prose. It is about the assemblage of huge forces by Pandavas and Kauravas at
the beginning of the epic war. As the prose stanzas chanted by Pedananna garu in his sweet and profound
voice are gushing out like the flow of Ganges, the assemblage of 18 Akshauhinis [5] and
their strategy to sing the ultimate song for the end of the Yuga [6] flashed
in my mind. Overawed by its sheer beauty, I listened to his recitation standing
still.
No one noticed Jiyyardas, who, coming in the dark as darkness
from the hamlet, stood a little away leaning on his shaft. Listening to the
untimely and the sudden howling of an owl from the babul grove on the tank
bund, Jiyyardas coughed loudly, perhaps, out of shock. Noticing him just then, Pedananna garu enquired, “What,
Dasuu, late in the night?” Jiyyar’s shaft just shook a little.
“Better if we soon thresh the paddy heap,
lord!”
“Water drained fully?”
“Floor is still a little bit damp, but no water lord!”
“How then to prepare threshing floor?”
“Shall plan for it along the road, lord!”
“Why so hurry? Wouldn’t it be alright to wait for a couple of
days more?”
Dasu stood silently – hesitating to answer as though something
got stuck in the throat.
“What is holding you back, Dasuu?”
“Yes, I have an apprehension, lord! Last night as some
people were moving around the paddy heap suspiciously, Yanadi [7] Tirupalu
had seen them, lord!”
“Men! Who are they?”
“Who else would come, lord? It’s only Munsif’s [8] brother-in-law’s
men, lord...”
Remaining in deep silence for ten minutes, Pedananna garu heaved a sigh.
In that silence everyone could hear it.
“Alright! Day after tomorrow is Trayodasi [9]. We
shall start on Sunday. Inform the cart-fellows tomorrow. Also keep your people
ready.”
But, the very next day, the fear of Jiyyardas turned into
reality—the paddy heap of around padiputllu
(100 bags) turned into ashes
on ekadasi [10]
in the western farm.
* * *
Living in towns for almost two generations and being acclimatized
to the urban lifestyle … … fondly
visualising rural life as calm and quiet as the nature; imagining the
even-paced life of the forthright rural folk as brimming with happiness … …
having been engaged in churning the world of fictional writing, when the
hardened wickedness of landlords manifested before me for the first time as an
impregnable fort in its true colours, I am to spend the whole day restlessly being
torn apart by anguish and anxiety. Wondered, if the demon emerging out of the
venom spewed by the landed-gentry and duly supported by the Mleccha [11] and
the Britishers is hurting whoever is defying the profession-based caste system
developed under the Aryan civilization? Is it that the force of a bullet—as is
being propagated by the revolutionary student unions through their slogans on
the compound walls—alone can stand against these demonic murderers? Why this
holy land that claims to be the home of Mahatmas, seers,
moral preachers, Vedas and their derivatives, today has chosen the path of
violence and crime? Centuries-old Vedantam [12] and
civilization … where are they hiding?
But Pedananna garu remained
undisturbed. That night he went and saw the burnt heap of paddy sheaves. Next
day, Sunday, as usual, early in the morning, he offered oblations to sun-god;
after reciting the Aditya mantra [13]
he came out and sitting on the pial, like a
modern-day Sahadeva, looked at the disease-stricken cattle standing before him in the front yard. He
suggested suitable course of treatment for cattle’s ailments to the farmers. Then
turning to the impoverished men, women and children standing on the other side
with scabs on skin due to the bite of poisonous creatures and dried-up faces, and
examining them he, packing a few peppercorns that had been sanctified by
reciting appropriate mantras in a white cloth and tying it around their arms,
seen them off. There were none who hadn’t offered their salutations—either
explicitly or implicitly—to that icon of a great seer, an accomplished purusha [14].
* * *
By then half of the poor people from the Harijan hamlet have assembled
in front of the house. Around ten to twelve farmers of repute sat on the pial
at the other side.
Jiyyar Das, Ramjogi, his sons Philip, Yakobu and Lukoi who had
converted to Christianity, were sitting in the front row restlessly. Behind
them there were other youngsters either sitting or standing in groups. Except
Jiyyar Das, all others were having in their hands either a shaft, or a spear.
Besides them, there was another group—pot-makers and a few others from different
rural professions. Mutrasu Narayudu, who is known to stand against anybody in
the village without fear, sitting with his upper cloth tied around his waist
and knees, is about to light his cigar but suddenly giving it off and putting it
behind his ear, waited restlessly for his turn to speak, with reddened eyes.
There was pin-drop silence—a kind of momentary silence that
occurs before a robbery. The only disturbance was the sweet conversations
that pedananna garu was
having with the farmers who had brought their cattle for treatment. Is that all
there is? Or, is this village going to become a battlefield in a few more
minutes? Are fire and wind getting ready for a killing spree to satiate their
hunger? Is this village going to burn its future into ashes in the wild flames
of hatred that has no salvation?
As the cattle and their owners were returning home, the big
farmers who could not express their sympathy in mere words too started leaving
one by one. By then it is around eleven o’clock. Yet, none of the poor stood
up. As the farmers were leaving, they glared at them furiously. Their attitude
perhaps gave shape to the kind of uncertainty that engulfed the yard. Washing
his hands and wiping with his Uttareeyam
(upper cloth), as Pedananna garu stood
up, Rangacharyulu butted in, perhaps, as
an ambassador of Aswini gods, [15] saying:
“Sanjeeva Rayudu garu! If
somebody could do this heinous crime against a great man like you, what could
be the fate of ordinary mortals like us?” He has thus broken the silence that
had till then remained frozen like the Himalayan peak.
Mutrasu Narayudu, who was indeed waiting for an opportune
moment, suddenly got up and staring furiously said: “That’s it. It’s to decide
on it that we are all sitting here. Asarlu babu, isn’t it that upon his
lordship’s nod alone that we could jump into action?” At it, the youth of the
Harijan hamlet, at once pushed themselves forward. Daniel, who returned from
military, waving his hands and with his body shaking in anger, shouted: “Lord
has only to say ‘Yes’, we could annihilate ten such Lachmi naarayans.”
So, the whole village, including kids, have come to know that
the paddy heap of Pedananna garu
was set on fire by Laxminarayana!
Coming forward, Jiyyar Das pushed Daniel back. Pushing the matter
forward gently, he said: “Lord, is this a village or a jungle? Isn’t it because
of Sanjeevaiah garu, standing by dharma, got the barren land alongside the
tank distributed to us that Laxminarayana became envious? Despite committing
such a heinous crime, did anyone from his caste said a single word against him?
But they are all great leaders—all with silk clothes, diamond rings, watches
with golden straps! Aren’t these Panchayati members
who conduct big meetings about silly thefts—events like plucking tamarind pods
or cattle straying into vegetable gardens—and summon police? Where has that
justice gone now, baabuluu (lord)?”
Reciting a Sanskrit verse, Acharyulu said: “Panchayati is nothing but an
assemblage of Pancha yatulu (five
gentlemen) whose passions are completely under hold! But where from we can get
such Yatulu (gentlemen) in today’s
world who could look around with equanimity!”
Ramjogi, the Panchayati member
from Harijan hamlet, getting angry at it, retorted thus: “Don’t tether the
horse and the ass to the same pole! Isn’t for giving evidence in favour of the
poor from the Harijan hamlet in the case of free land distribution that
Laxminarayana fed the Munsif poisoned
food, without even caring about his relationship, that of brother-in-law, with
him? And don’t forget! When none from them reported the matter to the police,
it is this Panchayati member,
Ramjogi, who stood by the truth!”
As one by one is thus speaking, the politics of the whole village
came out. I stood listening to them. Mutrasu Rayudu, getting up in a jiffy,
looking at the gathering started shouting: “We haven’t come to listen to
philosophy. These murderous landlords, the henchmen, who living under their
mercy, setting fire to the cattle feed… their time is out!”
That day was Maasa
sivarathri [16]. Time
is running out for Pedananna garu to
perform Abhishekam
[17].
Putting his one foot inside the door, he stared back. It was piercing. Staring
straight into the face of Acharyulu garu and pointing his finger
towards the sky, he said: “Sun, the all-pervading witness, has heard all this.
You are wise, aged and the knower of the difference
between dharma and adharma. The act of deciphering the justice
and injustice by the grama sabha [18] is
again god’s will. We are not the one who are empowered to punish. For
that dharma is there.” Then turning to the people, he said: “It’s
already late, go and attend to your works. Narayudu, Ramjogi, Jiyyaru—Did you
hear?”
Everyone stared at each other’s face. Reciting the holy
hymn, “Aaditya hrudayam punyam /
sarva shatru vinaasanam / Jayaavaham jape nityam …”—that is, being
dedicated to Sun deity will result in the destruction of all enemies, victory
and never-ending bliss…—Acharyulu garu offered his namaskar to pedananna garu, the very embodiment of piousness, who is going
inside.
* * *
I returned to the college. But the disposition of pedananna garu and the village that
was drowning in the dirty politics of land-owning higher castes was terribly
disturbing my mind. What is the use of dharma if it cannot protect a
gentleman like pedananna garu?
How fair it is to discourage those impoverished folks of the village who,
staking their lives even, craved for justice even in that wicked setup? For
changing whose heart did Pedananna
garu fan the cold breeze on their zeal for revolution? Or is he a mere
timid person? How could the independence of village that Gandhiji dreamt of
emerge in such an unfair setup? Is it by land reforms? Is it by proportionate
voting rights? Or only through class struggle? I could not decipher.
Rajarao, my friend and fellow political science lecturer,
says: “Landlords are the politicians of today! When all your legislative
assemblies are filled with such people, where is the scope for land reforms? If
you ask me—listen my dear, as yet we don’t have any force that could
consolidate the revolutionary capabilities of the teeming poor villagers!
That’s possible only for great leaders like Lenin. You might ask, what in the
meanwhile? Well, the cinema culture has spread to every village. Under the sway
of its glamour, the youth that you are referring to is already migrating to
urban agglomerations. Finally, it’s all govinda! [19] Don’t
get hesitated. Coolly teach your lessons. Simply see two movies a week. If you
still have energy, open a tuition outlet. And if you have courage, open a chit
fund company. But never feel sorry about your pedananna garu.” I, for one, wouldn’t like to go that side and
spoil my peace of mind again.
* * *
But as the axiom, “Man proposes, God disposes,” goes, within
six months, the marriage of my niece was fixed to be held at pedananna gari house. It was
already summer holidays. Amma insisted that I must come for the
marriage. So, the whole house moved to the village. Baskets full of mangoes,
jasmines, lots of lemonade and buttermilk and whatnot. Though, it’s a marriage
in summer, it went off exceedingly well. But our relatives had kept on postponing
our return journey by almost a week. In the meanwhile amma performed archana [20] in
the Chennakesavaswamy temple. As we are returning, Ramjogi, joining us on the
way narrated the village politics at a stretch.
There was the government’s barren land admeasuring seven to
eight acres alongside the tank outside the village. The landlords of the
village might have succeeded in occupying it but for the proposed project of
digging a drainage channel through that land. Subsequently, as the alignment of
drainage channel was shifted to the border of another village, Pedananna garu, running around many
government offices, could at last succeed in getting it distributed among the
poorest of the village along with necessary documents. All this took about five
years. As Pedananna didn’t
hesitate to expend either his labor or to put up with the expenditure thereof,
the greed of Laxminarayana could not fructify. With it, the quarrels started in
the village. Though Munsif was
the relative of Laxminarayana, by virtue of his making their unfair business
public, he became a victim of poisoned food. That is the history of the
village.
I asked Ramjogi: “With it you think all these quarrels have come
to an end?”
“People of our hamlet—be it men or women, including
children—have stopped attending to the farm activities of Laxminarayana!”
“Then?”
“He is getting labour from other villages by paying heftily.
Our people are, of course, obstructing them. But after all, their craving too
is for that little belly, isn’t it?” Thus, concluded Ramjogi.
So, this fire would not subside! One day, it might become a
wildfire swallowing both the good and the bad! When will Chennakesavaswamy, who
is receiving the salutations of people, restore this world, in which tyranny
and sorrow are crawling like twin kids, as promised in the Gita that
he delivered to the world? Or, when will the revolutionary leader of the
century that Rajarao referred to, will emerge in this land? In the nightfall of
the very next day I could get the answer for all my agonies and supplications.
* * *
At the creeping in darkness of the dusk, as pedananna garu, finishing his sandhyavandanam [21] came
out to pial, a horse-drawn cart stood in front of the gateway. It is the son of
Mantrasu Narayudu and Yesu, the brother-in-law of Suvartha, who manage this
cart jointly. Peddulu, the son of Narayudu, hurriedly setting right his towel
on the head, said, “The cow of Bharatapudi Karanam [22]
garu is in grave danger—could be
a snakebite! They asked us to fetch you at once in the cart.”
“Where did you see karanam
garu?”
“We had been going for railway track repair works… lord!”
Without even picking up his Uttareeyam, pedananna garu,
sitting in the cart, looked at me enquiringly, “like to come?” Bharatapudi
village is just on the other side of the railway track—hardly a mile and a
half.
As I said, “Shall put on my trouser and come with a torch. You
please start”, the cart started in a jiffy.
It took about ten minutes for me to reach the main road from
the home—Jiyyar Das, standing across the way in the darkness, signalled me to
stop.
“Who! Is it Das?”
In a whispering tone, he said: “In the haystack yard a snake
has bitten Laxminarayana’s son! It appears to be a cobra. Froth is coming out
from his mouth profusely. They are carrying him on a cart to your house! That’s
why we have sent away Sanjeevaiah garu in
the cart—you please walk slowly.”
“Then how about Bharatapudi karanam garu’s cow?”
“What cow? It is more than a year since they sold it off.”
I was shocked. I did not know what to say.
“This… This… What you all did is perhaps not a good thing, Dasuu!
It’s the question of a man’s life…”
“We haven’t done it sir. It’s the god above who ordered it.
It’s a right expiation for the deserving person.”
Before he completed his saying, I could see Laxminarayana
running before us turning towards the track going to Bharatapudi. In that dark,
he is waving his hands, swaying his upper cloth in air.
Hearing the echo of his crying, “Sanjeevarayudu garu… my
son, my son….”, I started running.
“My son… my son… you only can save him.”
So many stories I heard from amma about pedananna
garu restoring life to so many victims of snakebite coming from the nearby
villages.
In that darkness, I could see the cart stopping and again
starting—more perhaps an imagination of mine! I had put on the torch twice. The
rays could race to the cart. As I reached nearer to the cart, the Mantrasu boy
is arguing very angrily with pedananna
garu. Meanwhile, Laxminarayana, hit by an obstruction, has fallen flat on
the ground.
“Yes sir. We did lie. That’s the right punishment to him.
Lord, do you think we will keep quiet when he hit us under the belt? Didn’t he
see this god that day when he set fire to your paddy heap?”
Saying, “Chi—shut
your mouth. Where from you got this stupidity?”—pedananna garu jumped
out of the cart. Holding the reins of the horse, I turned the cart towards the
house.
* * *
By the time we returned, the snake bitten boy is lying on the
pial. He is breathing heavily, while froth was profusely flowing out of his
mouth. Appeared to be in the terminal stage. Ignoring the lamps around, he took
the torch from my hand. Examined the patient for a minute. In the
meanwhile, amma, coming from
inside, placed Pedanaanna’s uttareeyam
(upper cloth) on his shoulder. Without even thinking for a second, he, tearing that
upper cloth recited mantra with half-closed eyes, intermittently blowing air
with his mouth on the boy.
Watching that scene, all my doubts have been blown into
pieces. All those half-truths that I read in newspapers about snakebite
vanished like silk cotton drifting in the air.
The froth gushing out of his mouth stopped. Pedananna garu wiped his face with
his own upper cloth. His breathing stabilized. The boy appeared like a kid in
deep sleep. As amma handed
over water in the copper vessel, Pedananna
garu, reciting mantras, sprinkled water on his face. The boy opened
his eyes slowly. It is only then that I could turn back and see. I saw
Laxminarayana prostrating at the feet of pedananna garu with joined palms.
* * *
Amma hadn’t returned with me. As colleges opened in July,
I could see Rajarao.
“What my dear, your doubts aren’t still cleared? Saying, “returned from your village, aren’t you?”
he put his hand affectionately on my shoulder.
I said, “It’s not one, but two doubts.”
“Oh! One more problem?”
“Tell me Rajarao! People write that snake has no venom, those
who die are not due to poison but more out of shock; all these mantras are only
trash—how far it is true?”
Rajarao gave the answer without giving much scope for me to
speculate: “Nonsense! I have seen my uncle dying due to snakebite with my eyes.
You know my father retired as a station master! He used to tell about his giving
messages to Pamula (snake) Narasayya
who was known to treat people bitten by snakes by reciting mantra, at least on four
or five occasions during his tenure and restoring people to life. Why did you
get this doubt?”
I told him. Also, shown him the letter written by mother on
the previous day. “Read. After reading it, tell me: Is Gandhiji relevant to
today’s world or not?” I demanded him to answer me.
“So, Laxminarayana, the villain, had sent ten cart-loads of
paddy to your pedanaanna? And he
distributed it among the poor people in the Harijan hamlet? Good! Regarding
Gandhiji, my answer is ‘Yes’ and ‘No’—coming to a pious person like
your pedananna, he is very much relevant. Gandhiji is relevant to even nuclear
arms. But not to the whole of today’s setup”, said he.
I had very poor knowledge of politics. Felt it as improper on
my part to talk much about it. Perhaps,
Rajarao might be right!
******
[1] Bahula trayodasi—The lunar months are split into two pakshas (fortnights) of 15 days each: Shukla paksha (waxing paksha, light half) and Bahula paksha (waning paksha, dark half). Bahula trayodasi is the 13th day of the dark half.
[2] Dhanurmasam—auspicious month for the devotees of Vaishnava tradition that comes in the months December -January.
[3] Pedananna garu—‘Pedananna’ is father’s elder brother and ‘garu’ is the social art of expressing respect by using plural to address a person or appending the suffix ‘garu’ to a name and so on.
[4] Jaimini Mahabharat—a version of Mahabharata, which is known for its Aswamedhaparva, was written by Jaimini, an ancient Indian rishi (sage), who was a great philosopher of the Mimansa school of Indian philosophy. He was the disciple of the great rishi Veda Vyasa.
[5] Akshauhinis—an Akshauhini is an ancient battle formation that consisted of chariots, elephants, cavalry and infantry, as per the Mahabharata (Adi Parva 2.15-23).
[6] Yuga—in Hindu philosophy, it is the name of an ‘epoch’ or ’era’ within a cycle of four ages.
[7] Yanadi—one of the oldest tribes in Andhra Pradesh.
[8] Munsif—village head.
[9] Trayodasi—13th day of a lunar fortnight.
[10] Ekadasi—12th day of a lunar fortnight.
[11] Mleccha—“non-sons of the soil”, “barbarian”.
[12] Vedantam—philosophy.
[13] Aditya mantra—hymn to sun-god.
[14] Purusha—virtuous person.
[15] Aswini gods—Rig Veda describes them as Lords of speed.
[16] Masa sivarathri—holy day for devotees of Lord Shiva.
[17] Abhishekam—a ritual in Hindu temples where the deities are bathed.
[18] Grama sabha—the Grama Sabha is the grassroots level democratic institution in each Village Panchayat.
[19] Govinda—Oh! God.
[20] Archana—The god is worshipped as an icon (archa) and the devotee is the archaka. The rite performed is archana.
[21] Sandhyavandanam— meditating on the chosen excerpts from Vedas thrice daily during transition periods: one during sunrise (when day proceeds from night), next during midday (which is the transition from ascending sun to descending sun) and during sunset (when night takes over from day).
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