Up there is a big temple with a big shrine. Painted and polished just like a gentleman’s black shoe. Down there is a small temple with a steeple curved and bent as if it topples down. Daily it’s like a fair in the big temple engulfed with pleasant adore of incense, sonorous chanting of verses, singing of hymn etc. But what a pity to the small and the old one where hardly few lousy women would bend their head. But interestingly, both temples are of lord Shiva.
People worship that temple, pay homage, pilgrims come from far away. The temple is always full of devotees. Milk and sweets are offered to god Shiva. Fruits and flowers cover the idol. People believe in god. They go on worshipping and worshipping because they have to wash away their sin or have to complete their vow and pray for something. It seems those milk, sweets, flowers and even money offered to the god are like bribing god to fulfill their needs and desires.
They believe someday they will get salvation and wash away their sin, so they are on their way to hard penance and worship to get the god and his grace.
Temple is again full today. Comparatively bit more people than usual, since it’s a sacred day and people believe it’s the best day to worship.
Bells are being banged. Whole temple is covered with the flock of devotee with fruits, milks, sweets, money etc. sacred verses and spells are being chanted. Some people are quarreling for the line to worship, blaming each other for trespassing the line and row.
An old man, completely in a rags from top to the toe, face full of white beard and moustache; squatting, needless to say he is a beggar. His hands are trembling, vividly showing his hunger and weakness. Scruffy hairs, stinking unpleasantly in such a way anyone can sniff two miles away. His eyes are anticipating mercy for food and hands are continuously begging for alms. Alas, nobody bother even to glace him. He is wishing if somebody feeds him.
He is continuously begging people. Once in a while he gets but many of the time empty handed. He is continuously staring at the effigy of lord shiva, over flooded by sweets (laddu), flowers, money, milk and fruits. He wishes if he could eat those things given to the idol. Near the temple there’s a small restaurant (Bhatti) full of sweets and fast food items. A fat middle aged man is yawning in the counter, sometime swings his baton to the monkeys wandering around.
The poor beggar, gazing at the sweets offered to lord shiva, takes a gulp of saliva and what else he can do. He feels human has love and respect to only the idol of god. Human don’t walk on the right way shown by the god but instead commit lots of insane and unraveled sins and finally join the long line in the temple to wash them out.
The whole day this old fellow stays perceiving human and their love for god. Inside the temple, god is full of fruits and foods, outside, the beggar is dying of starvation. God has majestic home i.e. temple but this old fellow is homeless, foodless. Everybody is caring and worshipping god inside but outside not even a single one turning eye to the poor man. No pity at all. Inside, the idol is washed by milk, outside no water even to quench the thirst of that poor beggar. Flock of people lining to worship and offer things to the idol but no single hand to tame the old beggar’s wounded heart…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Suddenly, the old beggar raises his body. Sluggishly, gazes at the temple and effigy of the god. Surprisingly, he has might to stand and walk now. It seems the mighty falcon is about to hover around the blue horizon. Now he is heading back from where he came. Astonishingly, his steps are not like the old beggar’s earlier but like the fastest leopard leaping and heading to the unknown destination……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
subhash thapa magar
