The Tinge...

The Tinge…

The first rain on the parched earth,
A tinge of aroma of the first wet mud.
Schools cancelled, roads mud-puddled
Collars-pockets of shirts ruffled
Crisply ironed pleated skirts side-turned, shuffled.
A tinge of joy - a child’s giggle - as we break through those wrought-iron imprisoning gates all at once like a chorus jingle.
A tinge of fear as we broke that cursed vintage window…
What a pleasurable tinge it was to put a finger on the just made hot apple-pie kept for cooling on the shadowed kitchen corridor..!
A tinge of fantasy as I lie watching the clouds transmutating to different forms,
Goofing it all up yet laughing out loud as we mess up the first ever session of a ballroom dance….!
Ravished eyes
Behold such charms
One tender sigh
From the golden girl
And all men stand enchanted and disarmed!
It’s a tinge to watch a budding flower
To steady a flickering flame
To spruce up a sprouting seed
Or to feel the tingle of an ant crawling on my feet.
It’s a tinge to inhale those petrol-kerosene-gasoline fumes of the vehicular exhaust pipes
Like it’s a tinge to stand up and speak out in a jeering crowd all alone with ‘’your own voice booming out’’ loud.
It’s a tinge to see the meaded honey drip out of the honey comb
To see the ale from malt
To pinch the leaves, crush ginger for a spicier tea
To gather those bunched up grapes for a heady wine
To brew the coffee beans for that mug of filter coffee
As one draws ale from rye or barley…
It’s a tinge feeling when your flight is just to land or about to take off.
It’s a tinge when that perfect dress that you’ve set your eyes upon stays on that window pane till the last day of sale, the day you get your pay cheque….
It’s a tinge when the price tag on your new dress tickles your back or kisses your neck…
It’s a tinge when the sun comes out, dissipates darkness, ushers in light
It’s a tinge of wonder when through the rain, the rainbow shines, as the line of birds on the tiled roof resume their flight…
It’s a tinge of that swing in your step as you watch a handsome young man sipping his coffee, sitting cross-legged
It’s a tinge to ride the bike down the slope with the gushing wind across your face numbing your tiny nose…
It’s a tinge to trek atop a mountain or dive in to the deep Italian Mediterranean…
It’s a tinge of anti-gravity push on the Singaporean G-force ride, like it’s the tinge of seeing swarming schools of fishes on coral coastal side…
It’s a tinge to lick off your hands the pulp of a juicy ripe mango,
It’s a tinge to stone those tamarinds sour – relish its ‘’tango’’
It’s a tinge of anticipation just before la douche pours over me its first cold sprinkle
It’s a tinge wearing the just ironed warm clothes after the cold shower.
It’s a tinge to smell the oil-bathed, freshly Johnson and Johnson’s powdered baby’s fragrance
It’s a tinge to watch the reddening of the baby’s cheek under the scorching sun…
It’s a tinge to perhaps feel the baby’s mouth suckling at his mother’s breasts
It’s a tinge to hear incessantly the roaring of sea-waves…
It’s a tinge of thrill hanging out on the Mumbai local trains or jumping on the footboard of the double-deckers or jay crossing trespassing the ‘’yet to turn green’’ signal…
It’s a tinge of going around in those revolving doors or wet your feet in someone else’s fountain park…
It’s a tinge of relief after peeing hot pee in your neighbors garden orchid pot..!!
It’s a tinge to smell the incense sticks or hear those chiming bells to be blessed with turmeric-tulsi-ashes-a kernel coconut
It’s a tinge of pleasure to dig one’s ear with a titillating ear-bud
It’s a tinge to feel the cold marble stoned floor of the temples like it’s a tinge to listen to the chants of the Rudra-Japa-Gayatri Mantra…
It’s a tinge watching the Wagah border military parade or the final run to be scored by India in an Indo-Pak cricket match, like its an untiring tinge to every Indian listening to our National Anthem with utmost respect and absolute attention…
It’s a tinge enthralled by the divinity of the illuminating candles in the church.
It’s a tinge seeing a hundred heads bow in prayer in unison to ‘’Allah’’ in a moment of respectful reverence.
It’s a tinge feeling having poky hair despite enduring those painful wax sessions

Words combining with thoughts - lost within knowing
Simplicity - liberation found.
It’s a tinge the smell of a new book or the early morning’s newspaper print.
It’s a tinge finding old Ferrero Rochers wrappers tucked and forgotten until this very moment in some old book…
It’s a tinge watching the lovers meet, reunite rekindle only to be distanced again, romancing at train stations as the flags wave down, the whistles blow, the train inches forward with the green signal ‘’Go’’…
A tinge of sorrow while listening to Amadeus Mozart’s Requiem
A tinge of nostalgia while walking along the streets of Paris
Yellow, red, golden falling leaves of tree barren autumns
A tinge of musical strings, of chords played, of swerving swooning dances orchestrated, performed, appreciated, applauded.
A tinge of victory…a tinge of laughter of familiar voices
A tinge of the golden light through the dews on the grass…holes on the walls…imperfections in our paths…
A tinge of peace to see a shawl draped sleeping child….squares of colors, empty doorways, sketching portraits, oil-painting a landscape…
A tinge of feminity, clinging of those glass bangles, resounding anklets with the on-going festivity…
A tinge to see the trail of red sindoor on her fore-head.
A tinge of shyness when he steals a glance at her, like when the cold mehendi on your hands gives you a tinge wanting to itch your back…
It’s a tinge when you whiff the roasted cashews and almonds in ghee or the piping aroma of the cinnamon tea
It’s a tinge of something existing as a memory or are they just treasures hidden in the next moment ‘’soon to pass’’ fleeting seconds?
It’s a tinge of misty greens, of warm-baked-butter-choco-chip cookies
It’s a tinge of mind moving patterns on that ceiling fan, drifting me to a hypnotic deep slumber when I’m in despair..
Wind blown pages
Blue-inked words
Note-pad smudged..
Pages curl..
Textured with dust
Would the spark be kindled? Rekindled?
A hint?
A pinch?
A touch?
A tone?
Or just no hopes?
A tinge when something comes to an end
As the orange fiery sun dips in to the blue ocean
Knit one
Pearl two
Like the costume-clown almost through
That piercing glint
That endearing stint
Wafts away in the wind like my Elizabeth Ardour perfume – innocent- free-sweet
The wishful dream sweeping me off my feet …
Like the rising sun
The setting moon
Trees in flame
Drenched in rain
Dawn’s light
In diffused delight
With a tinge of attraction
With a tinge of repulsion
With a tinge of craving
With a tinge of aversion
With a tinge of love
With a tinge of anguish
With a tinge of hopeful hopelessness
With a tinge of hope against hope…
Soaked
Imbued
Inspired
Intoxicated
Here I’m
But sooner or later, the nicer ‘’me’’ may resume…

To Pee or Not to Pee....

Paan-spit-spray paint adorns our country's walls..

Human wastes splattered over all railings - as our folks attend to the Nature's call....

An obsessive cleanliness within the sanctity of our own homes...

But whats with us spitting, urinating or trashing (as if its our constitutional right), the moment we step out of our doors?

Money, power?

Status, Prowess?

Wealth, poverty?

The rich in his Merc as well as the slum dweller in his rags, each is equally guilty...!

Is it lack of basic amenities, facilities of sanitation?

Or the ''Most credible given explanation'' is ''oh. its rapid urbanization!''..??

Traditionally, personal hygiene had ''caste'' considerations for ''optimum social-economic functioning''..

But today, all religions spit equally and all castes spit without bias...

As Historian William Darlymple rightly says,'' India taught the English everything about personal hygiene. Before they came to India, the British bathed once a year...''

How strange has then been this role-reversal for weren't we once champions of Holy baths, Ash-dips and spiritual cleansing?

Has the imperialist-colonialist ''coming'' attributed to our own cultural failing?

Can roping in of our Ace Aamir Khan by the Ministry of Tourism to extol cleanliness virtues on Ad-campaigns resolve the eternal ''Hamlet-like'' dilemma of ''To Pee or Not to Pee''??

Looks like we'll have to just wait and see....;)

Ayodhya - Built by Gods, Broken by Men

Built by the Gods, Broken by Men = Ayodhya is not just the place where the Babri Masjid stood. It is a microcosm of India’s multicultural past.

The tension in the air enhanced by the security personnel and the verdict announced is one side of the Ayodhya story, but there is a lesser known side of the city which is in stark contrast to its image as a ticking communal bomb. The Atharva Veda describes it as a ‘’city built by Gods and being as serious and calm as paradise itself.’’ Ayodhya in Sanskrit means ‘’not to be warred against’’ and all over there are signs of its secular and saintly past. There are 32 mosques in this Holy city of Hindus. The ‘’azaan’’(call for prayer) echoes through the walls of temples and mixes with the bhajans and non-stop recitations of the Hanuman Chalisa. Mythology has given the city a unique status for Hindus, a place built by Gods where Lord Ram was born, but Ayodhya is equally sacred for Muslims, Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists. There is the minaret that stands tall amid temples on the banks of the Sarayu river, which nobody knows who built or when. A few furlongs away is the famous cave temple of Hanuman Garhi, from where Lord Hanuman keeps a watch on the Ram Janmabhoomi or Ramkot. The Muslim ruler of Awadh, Nawab Shuja-Ud-Daula, had constructed this temple. Within the fort-like temple complex is the all-faith Satyar temple with idols of Ram, Buddha and Mahavira, and pictures of Mecca-Medina and Zarathustra.

Such symbolism is all over Ayodhya which embraces some 1200 temples. In another corner of the city is the famous Dargah of Hazrat Sheesh, who is believed to be the son of Adam, the first messenger of God. Then there is the Dargah Naugazi- an impressive, 16.2-m grave that attracts both Hindu and Muslim devotees from all over india. Pir Nuh Aleihi Salaam, after whom the mausoleum is named, is believed to be Noah and the grave his famous ark. The large number of Sufi shrines that were once an integral part of the ancient cityscape made local Muslims believe that Ayodhya was like Mecca-Khurd(small Mecca).

Scholars have pointed out that Sufi saints had used Ayodhya as a centre of spiritual teachings since 12h century. Among the mystic saints were Qazi Qidwattuddin Awadhi, who came from central Asia, and sheikh Jamal Gujjari of the Firdausiya school in the pre-Mughal era. On the other hand, some Buddhists had wanted to join the legal battle over Ram Janmabhoomi as a concerned party because of their ancient links. They claimed that Ayodhya was a Buddhist centre but int the wake of the revivalist movements in the medieval period, Buddhist shrines were taken over and converted in to temples. This was found legally untenable. It has, however been established that Chinese Buddhist traveler Huien Tsang came to Ayodhya and found some 3000 Buddhist monks.

Ayodhya is also the birth place of Jain tirthankaras Rishabh Deo, Ajinath, Abhinandannath, Anantnath and Sumatinath. The first Sikh Guru Nanak Dev, ninth Guru Tegh Bahadur Singh and tenth Guru Govind Singh meditated at Gurudwara Brahmakund on the Brahmaghat which, in mythology, was where Brahma meditated for 5,000 years. Ayodhya is just 6 Km away from Faizabad which was the capitall of Nawabs, who with their Iranian background were quite secular. Faizabad has a special place in Urdu Literature. Mir Anees the Shakespeare of Urdu literature, besides other famous poets and writers, belonged to Faizabad. If Umrao Jaan, the famous courtesan and poetess added romance to the Nawabi era in Lucknow, Begum Akhtar or Akhtari Bai, the Ghazal, dadra and thumri singer made Faizabad proud.

Much of the remains of the past have been destroyed or are decaying but the spirit of the city retains tradition of love and mutual trust that the saints, sufis and nawabs created……



In brief, the majority verdict from the three judgements is as follows:


The gist of the court findings goes like this. The spot where the idols are kept today, which was under the central dome of the demolished structure, is the spot generally believed to be, and worshipped as, the birthplace of Lord Ram. So the court ordered: let it be so. ‘’It is declared that the area covered by the central dome of the three-domed structure, i.e; the disputed structure being the deity of Bhagwan Ram Janamsthan and place of birth of Lord Rama as per faith and belief of the Hindus, belong to plaintiffs… and shall not be obstructed or interfered in any manner by the defendants.’’

That the disputed land in Ayodhya be divided in to three equal parts among the parties to the dispute, namely, Ram Lalla (Infant Ram), represented by his sakha(or close friend) Trilokhi Nath Pandey; the Nirmohi Akhara, which has staked its claim to the property since 1885 and ran a place of worship on the premises; and the Sunni Central Waqf Board, which claimed to have had possessions of the disputed structure and the land around it since the 16th century.


While putting forward this three-way division, the verdict also held that the place under the central dome of the demolished Babri Masjid is the birthplace of Ram ‘’ As per faith and belief of Hindus’’ and hence should belong to the Hindus as represented by Pandey. A makeshift temple of Ram has existed since December 6th 1992, the day the Babri Masjid was demolished. Justice Agarwal, who wrote the lengthiest judgement, running in to 21 volumes and more than 5,000 pages, quoted from Rig Veda: ‘’During the Dissolution, there was neither existence nor non-existence, and at that time neither LOK(world) was there nor was anything beyond space. What encompassed all at that time? Where was the abode and of whom? What was the unfathomable and deep water?...’’


After firmly affixing legality to faith and belief, the majority verdict also held that the disputed structure was constructed by Babar. Justice Khan said that for a long time until the construction of the mosque, it was believed by Hindus that somewhere in the large area of the disputed land, there existed a very small portion which was the ‘’Janmasthan’’ of Ram. However, he said that the belief did not relate to any specific small area in the 2.77 acre disputed land. He also said that the Hindus started identifying the disputed structure, sometime after the construction of the mosque, as the exact birthplace of Ram or as a place wherein the exact birthplace of Ram was situated. Justice Khan also found that much before 1855, Ram Chabutra and Sita Rasoi had come in to existence and Hindus were worshipping there. This was the basis for his finding that both Muslims and Hindus were held to be in joint possession of the entire premises under dispute.


Justice Khan found that for some decades before 1949, Hindus had started treating/believing the place beneath the central dome of the mosque to be the exact birthplace of Ram. He said that the idol was placed for the first time beneath the central dome of the mosque in the early hours of December 23, 1949. But he doesnot explain its relevance in deciding that both parties could be declared as joint title holders of the entire disputed premises when it is clear that the installation of the idol in 1949 was illegal and should have been reversed immediately. In contrast, he assumes that an illegal act, if not corrected in subsequent years, vindicates itself.

Of crucial importance is how Justice Khan interprets the Limitation Act. When the suits (except suit No:5) were instituted, the Limitation Act, 1908, was in force. It was replaced by the Limitation Act, 1963. According to this Act, the suits for declaration of rights had to be filed within 12 years of the 1949 incident, and the Sunni Waqf Board filed its case within the limitation of 12 years, It was filed on December 18,1961, within the limitation without adversely affecting the title of the Sunnis. But Justice Khan found the suit time-barred. This interpretation appears to be debatable. Justice Khan declared all the three sets of parties, Muslims and Hindu organisations and the Nirmohi Akhara, joint title holders of the property/premises in dispute, to the extent that the disputed land should be equally divided-one-third share to each for using and managing the same for worship. However, in his final decree, he allotted the portion below the central dome to Hindus. Thus an illegal installation, followed by regular pujas, enabled Hindus to acquire the right to pray at a particular spot and secure the same spot through a court-directed partitioning of land.


Justice Agarwal’s reasoning of the right to worship is bizarre. He held that the Hindu plaintiffs had a right to worship: ‘’The place in suit to the extent it has been held by this court to be the birthplace of Lord Rama and if an idol is also placed in such a place the same can also be worshipped.’’ But it is not clear how he holds that the right to worship flows from a mere belief that a particular place is the birthplace of a god. Even if it is conceded that historically there has been such a belief, an explanation of how the legal right to worhsip could be inferred from it would have been necessary. Justice Agarwal seems to condone the illegal placing of the idols inside the mosque in 1949 because it was based on such a belief.


This has serious implications for the other religious sites, and the secular tenet of the Constitution faces the risk of being seriously compromised, let alone the challenge of maintaining inter-communal harmony.


Justice Khan records in his judgement that in 1885 the Sub-Judge of Faizabad had conceded that there was no doubt regarding the possession and ownership of Hindus over the Chabutra(the platform outside the mosque which had Ram’s feet embossed on it). But the Sub-Judge had held that it was against the public policy to permit the construction of a temple thereupon. The court was then of the opinion that granting permission to construct a temple would amount to laying the foundation for communal riots.


An appeal against this judgement was dismissed by F.E.A.Chamier, the then District Judge of Faizabad, on march 18, 1886, saying that it was too late to remedy the Hindu’s grievance as the event of building the masjid on a piece of land held sacred by the Hindus had occurred 356 years earlier.


The second appeal was dismissed by Justice W.Young, the Judicial Commissioner of Oudh, on November 1, 1886. The penultimate sentence of the judgement in the second appeal was that there was nothing whatsoever on record to show that the Hindu plaintiff was in any sense the proprietor of the land in question.


The Lucknow Bench appears to have achieved what could not be achieved in 1885. This must lead to a genuine introspection by our judicial authorities on whether historical evidence and precedents could easily be brushed aside to accommodate contemporary jingoistic pressures.


In his judgement on the land acquisition case, delivered on December 11, 1992, Justice S.H.A Raza of the Allahabad High Court rightly said that an ‘’article of faith cannot be stretched to such an extent which threatens the Rule Of Law. The contention that faith is beyond the jurisdiction of the Court is centered around the application of theocratic ideas.’’ Still less can the faith of one community become the law of the land by a judicial ruling because it happens to be the majority community.


But what if judges themselves rely on their own religious faith in their judicial orders? Justice D.V.Sharma remarks on Ram and ‘’the spirit of divine’’ in this context are eloquent enough. Courts can try only suits of a ‘’civil nature’’(section 9 of the Civil Proceedure Code) in matters of faith. Remember the Evidence Act permits expert evidence only on a few limited matters (Sections 45 to 50). History and Archeology are not among them. The Act itself is misread by Justice S.U.Khan, who held that ‘’both the parties have failed to prove commencement of their title. Hence by virtue of section 110 of the Evidence Act, both are held to be joint title holders on the basis of joint possession.’’


Section 110 says no such thing. It says, on the contrary, that ‘’when the question is whether any person is owner of anything of which he is shown to be in possession of, the burden of proving that he is not the owner is on the person who affirms that he is not the owner.’’- in this case, the Sangh Parivar vis-à-vis the Babri Masjid. The Supreme Court has held that ‘’a presumption of an origin in lawful title could be drawn….in order to support possessory rights, long and quietly enjoyed, where no actual proof of title is forthcoming.’’ The longer the possession, the stronger the presumption (1991 Supp (2), SCC 228 at pages 243-244).


Records of the 19th century litigation disprove Justice Khan’s inference of ‘’Joint possession’’. From such errors flow the bizqrre order of a tripartite partition, which the media and others have so readily lapped up as an act of ‘’judicial statesmanship’’. The record since December 23, 1949, shows the judgement of september 30, 2010, to be a crowning act on consistent judicial injustices to Muslims in 1950,1955,1986 and 1994. The verdict comes despite the Places of Worship (Special Provisions Act. 1991), which makes it impossible for anyone to change the status of a religious place, including Kashi. Will Ayodhya become a precedent? In Benares, the bone of contention is the Gyanvapi masjid which stands next to the Kashi Vishwanath temple. In Mathura, next to the Krishajanmasthan temple is the Shahi Idgah mosque. Are we slated for further division?