FAITH

Mohammad Khalil Dy. Superintendent of Police, Anti Corruption on his return from official Haj pilgrimage was called in by his superior SSP Hamid Khan to narrate the event to him. Khalil Sahib said: “Sir one of the pillars there at the mosque is under protest.”

Astonished Khan said “Reason?”

“Sir, Prophet Mohammad is said to have rested and relaxed against the neighbouring pillar. And the pillar under protest protests for such a discrimination.” said Khalil Sahib.

Soon Khan Sahib called in Jawahir Lal Pundita retired DIG, the then Dy. SP to listen to the event.

To mock at Khalil Sahib, Khan Sahib said: “It must have created a law and order problem.”

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Recently while recasting the previous events, DIG Pundita(Retired) acclaimed the genius in Khalil Sahib as a perfect Police Officer. I reminded him of ‘the pillar episode’ and asked him if genius, why did he make fool of himself with such a statement.

Pundita said: “It is FAITH.”

I remained silent. I have faith in Maha Ganesh and carry three Maha Ganeshs in my pocket and claim: “Maha Ganesh is in my pocket.”

2004, I wept and sobbed in front of the Rock depicting my Ganesh at Hari Parbat Srinagar. It is my faith that within a week’s time my job held up for four years got solved.

While concentrating on each point of the Rock, I see image of Maha Ganesh.

To be a vegetarian or non vegetarian has nothing to do with sanctity of the temple. It is the individual’s mindset.

Once at Tulmul in late fifties, , Amar Nath Munshi’s( Fire Brigade officer) ‘doonga’ in the night got a little shake due to somebody’s push. Alarm was raised and a villager in a fishing boat was apprehended as a thief. In the morning, the held up villager (Ghar jewaiee) confessed his crime and lead the police to a site across the nalah to show them the place where he said had buried the booty. He named all the male members of his in-laws as his associates in the crime. Pundit Amar Nath repeatedly said to the police that nothing was missing in his doonga and no theft had taken place.

I asked one of the villagers in the crowd as to what could be the reason of innocent people getting humiliated and beaten.

He said: “His in-laws are respectable people and are never expected to commit any crime. We the villagers of Tulmula will never go for fishing in the nalah around the Tulmul Nagh. It is our faith in Tulmul. He being an outsider with little faith in our conviction must have clandestinely tried fishing during the night. Mata has caught him and that is why his other innocent people are suffering for no crime.”

Ramzan Badyari, the Doonga  walla used to tell us to inform him for trip to Tulmul one week earlier, so that the family remained vegetarian for the week and would wash clothes and mop the doonga to make both worthy for Tulmul.

Had eating mutton been sin, nature would have not created carnivores. It is one’s mind set. Whatever justification, to a lay man like me it is one’s mindset. Sin or no sin is a relative term. Beef eater Muslims do not die due to eating of beef and pork eater Hindus do not die due to pork. Bahta is allowed both jethka and halal with little restrictions on a few occasions. Mindset and faith discipline the life of a human being. Had lagan and nikah not been there then all would be savages.