As a child I often got into trouble with my conservative Indian parents for my willingness to bare my soul to just anyone I found interesting, warm, witty or sweet - regardless of color, caste, age, gender, income or status. My mother was genuinely scared for me - how would she manage to get a maverick like me married to the right man when the time came? I was unpredictable and rebellious, she complained, I constantly challenged her authority and wisdom (based most often on nothing more than generations of women being coaxed/forced to follow male diktats), and guess what, she was right. Once, when a relative visited us from afar and asked my mother how she was doing, she pointed to me and declared, quite seriously, that I was the reason her hair would turn gray. And she meant it, the poor darling, for she was an obedient traditionalist who never bucked the status quo and had never stood up for her rights (did she even know them?) - nor did she think her daughters should stand up for themselves either. Whats the point in educating us if you dont want us to use our minds? I would furiously demand of her from time to time, and she would blush and flush and tell me I should hush because I had already caused enough mischief with my wild ways. Secretly I think she envied my fiery nature - she herself was beautiful, placid and sweet and had been thoroughly brainwashed into believing it was her duty to put up with endless crap from the men who ruled her life. So, I hear you say, whats the point of this morning ramble, eh, Mira? Well, the thought just flashed this morning that while my non-conformist streak continues to get me into trouble, today, thank all the gods, I no longer erupt into destructive behavior; instead I channel this intense energy into writing the kind of books I myself like to read, and into my quest, which is the permanent end of suffering - call it mukti, moksha or liberation. On that mystical note, I send every one of you greetings from the base of the sacred hill Arunachala, who destroys the ego so we may experience our true Self which is immortal, blissful and a lot more fun than the troublesome ego that rules our relative existence. OM!
Posted on: Tue, 05 Aug 2014 01:52:39 +0000
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