Dussehra

Festival of Dussehra also known as Vijayadashmi ,victory of good over evil has just been reduced to a national holiday or mere a Festival for rural lndia or that class of lndia that has so far no access to multiplexes and multistoreyed malls. The chunk of population that still flocks  towards the public gatherings, fairs and festivals is quite small. So called upper middle class or elite society people prefer not to mingle with the dust for celebrating such occasions and rather prefer rest at home or having parties in clubs.

I being a language teacher often make an effort to correlate chapters to real life experiences or mythologies in my classrooms . The previous week, to my shock  during one of my classes l realized that the students today are drifting away from our roots,our rich culture. Just a simple question about who was the blind king in Mahabharat got me strange but funny answers. Teaching a chapter of class IX 'The Happy Prince' l had thought students would come up with the ready answers. One student said blind king was Shakuni, another Said Raja Harishchandra, one said Yudhistra. My patience was almost exhausted  when a child said father of Five Kauravs. One child of course,  did correction and said Pandavs were five and Kauravs were hundred. Then l told them that Dhritrastra was the king and Sanjaya was his Charioteer who had become his eyes during the great war and taught the story of the Happy Prince and Swallow which becomes ready eyes for the prince once he turned completely blind after donating both of his sapphire eyes for poor people.

At the age of 45 when l look back l feel proud that our generation  when we were children had grown up listening about tales of Valour from annals of history, stories based on mythologies , stories full of wisdom from Panchtantra and freedom struggle unlike the present one that's a prisoner of social networking sites.I have beautiful memories of watching effigies of Ravan and his aide his younger brother and mighty son being burnt on every Dussehra. 

Though, after my marriage for a couple of years l didn't go for watching Dussehra festival yet when we became parents twenty years back we made sure that our children should enjoy every festival. We not only wanted them to enjoy but also wished that they must know the reason behind celebration and the sublime values every festival has to teach us. On every Dussehra after my kids were born and even when my son and daughter couldn't even pronounce it's name properly we would take them to the Theme park in Kurukshetra to view colossal effigies being burnt. 

My husband would leave all his work and take us always almost fifteen minutes before the great burn. Keeping in mind the safety of the family he would climb up a square with a huge statue of a famous political leader and would make our son sit on his shoulders to make him view the effigies,while l would carry my little daughter in my arms . The moment the effigies would burn we would rush back towards our car holding our treasure our little ones tightly. Once my son grew a bit my daughter took his place on her father's shoulders. Years after years passed but our reaching out that square never stopped.  

My boy, my son once he was in ninth class  refused to accompany us. He was in particular growing as a person who loved solitude more than company. But our energy ball my daughter insisted to go as usual. She was in particular fond of every festivity. A carbon copy of her father she took us to the fair when she was in IX, X,  XI and even in XIl.

I could never understand that Dussehra was ever so special for me until today when l know  both of my children have flown to a far off place to explore new avenues for themselves. And there is no reason or strength left in my bones to even think of visiting Theme park.

Last year , my daughter's visa process for her studies abroad was on it's way. My son had already left a few months back to return after four or five years.Like every year on Dussehra,  she took us by surprise by her tantrums to visit the fair. I was annoyed with her and told her to grow up but she made her father leave all his work to take her view effigies one more time. She called her best friend  to accompany us and both of them enjoyed a lot at the fair. At that moment,  l was feeling my time was wasted by my daughter. I hadn't the slightest of the idea that with that Dussehra this festival would loose its significance for me. Today on the same occasion, l miss all those years when we went out for the Theme park,  the traffic,  the honking, my irritation everything. Now that both of my children are far from country, struggling to accomplish their goals, learning to meet new challenges l feel every Dussehra celebration was worth it. I wish l could turn the wheel of the time one more time and hold both of my kids each with a hand and go back to the same square and enjoy the festival without vexation. But the beauty of time's wagon is that it has no reverse wheel. Therefore,  we should live every moment to the fullest when it's in our hands to do that.

Happy Dussehra.