Skip to main content

Path To Belief

Two days ago, I ran an experiment. 24 hrs. with no gadgets and by  that I mean my phone, Nook & laptop. Not my idea of a grand old time but still, in the name of science and my mother I forged ahead. Now what could I do to fill those 24 hours? In a house where the average age is about 55, my options where pretty limited an anyone can imagine.
As part of Operation Rehabilitate Shilpa, my grandmother and her daughter took me to the temple first thing in the morning. Cue the usual rigmarole Hindus do in temples and hours (well more like 30 minutes but it sure felt like hours to me) later we were on our way home again. An ordeal but I managed to pull through, without  murmur. 

Later that afternoon, the following conversation happened between my mother and me:
Mom: I don’t like what you did in the temple.
Shilpa: What did I do? Only everything you told me.
Mom: (& I quote) But that’s not enough. You can’t just go through the motions. You have to love God and believe in Him. Being a girl means having certain qualities and believing in God is one of them, so get started on it and become a girl. Unquote.
Well color me confused! It’s not enough that I’ve kept my own beliefs aside for a morning and followed you to the temple, where you most likely prayed to get rid of me as soon as possible, and did everything I was asked to, but I’ve to also believe in your beliefs!! Mrs.Bennet can’t hold a candle to my mother when it comes to marrying off her daughters.

What’s worse, being in India I can’t even get myself to a therapist. Guess this blog’s got to do the job for now. Any ideas on how I can become a girl? Maybe a 10 point program similar to AA would help me check all the points listed here? 

Helpful hints on how to turn an ardent fan of Einstein, Russell & Dawkins into an equally ardent believer in God are always welcome in the comments. Best I’ve got is Fake it till I’ve Made it!
Labels:

Comments

  1. Abhilash BingiMarch 10, 2012 at 7:46 PM

    A therapist?! Girl, you are spoilt kid! What are friends for?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Why Don’t We Raise Our Sons like We Do Our Daughters?

This post originally appeard in Women's Web: Why Don’t We Raise Our Sons like We Do Our Daughters? One of the hot button topics right now in Indian media is the safety of women – or rather how our country doesn't really care about half its population. From rape, sexual assault, harassment (in streets, public transport, nearly every public place) to violence perpetrated on women, Indians are finally getting around to discussing taboo topics. One refrain that caught my eye throughout these debates – both online and off – is the fact that the reaction of the majority of Indians is the same: girls should stay at home, not go out after dark, dress appropriately and so on if they want to stay safe. No one seems to bat an eyelid when laying down these precautions for women. Except that the reality is women would be far safer if all the men simply DID NOT RAPE or HARASS any person that looks remotely female. No one has to stay at home and become a hermit! That got me th
3 comments
Read more

Arranged Versus Love Marriage

This post originally appeared in Women's Web:  Arranged Versus Love Marriage: Here's Why Things Are Changing In 21st-century India, change is so rapid that we barely have time to get used to something before some new trend is on the horizon. And I'm not just talking about technology here. Whether it is human behavior, relationships, societal or cultural norms, Indian society – along with the rest of the world – today is hardly recognizable to my parents or their parents. It's not a surprise that the institution of marriage and the process of finding a life partner is also undergoing a metamorphosis. Perhaps this is one of the areas where the gap between generations is the most obvious. Almost every day, there is a TV show or media report or blog post talking about arranged vs. love marriages. So I figured I would present my take on it as well! Whenever anyone talks about arranged versus love marriages - I don't know why they are always portrayed as opposing
3 comments
Read more

One Step Up

Radha Radha knew that Lakshmi was eyeing her sari, though no expression showed on her face. All the maids thought she was arrogant for not talking to them but Radha had never been one of those people who thought her caste made her a better person. It had just been easier not to talk to anyone when she had first come to the city. Besides, these maids never had anything much to talk about except gossip and no one knew better than her how much damage could be caused when women gossiped! It was gossip that made her believe in Chandrasekhar. That he was a famous author, pretending to be a wastrel and swindler for his latest novel. He had been so charming, she had fallen for him completely. Her parents had died when she was 13 and she had always wanted someone to take care of her. She had been so happy. Until the day she woke up to find that he had disappeared and her house sold without her knowledge. He had turned out to be a swindler, pretending to be a famous author. She had been l
2 comments
Read more