नवरथ (8)

नवरथजी कई दिन शुबह से शाम तक सभा में बैठे लेकिन एक भी लडकी के  पिता ने उनका साक्षात्कार नहीं लिया। अंतिम दिन उन्होंने तय   किया कि आज किसी   भी सूरत में शादी करनी  ही है। कई दलाल (घटक) लगाए गये। कुछ लेन-देन करके  मेरे नायक की शादी एक अति धनाढ्य परिव़ार में तय हुई. काफी धूम धाम से शादी हुई. वहन क़ी खुशी का क्या कहना? ख़ुशी से उसके पर लग गए गये थे। चतुर्थी के भोज के लिए पूरे गाँव को न्योता दे आई. भाई के ससुराल में रेहू मछली,चूडा-दही, आम, केला, चावल, ख़ाजा, लड्डू, जलेबी और रसगुल्ले के भार का छोड़ लग गया। गाँव में आज तक किसी के यहाँ से  ऐसा भार न तो विदा किया गया था और न पहुंचा ही था। यश-यश हो गया। नयी दुल्हन के लिए नवरथ की वहन ने खूब सुन्दर साड़ी और रत्न जड़ित सोने का हार भेजा. सुन्दर साड़ी  और गहने पहनकर दुल्हन परी लग रही थी।                    

माँ

                                                         
'कुपुत्रो जायेत क्वचिदपि कुमाता न भवति।' सब कुछ मिल सकता है लेकिन माँ  नहीं मिल सकती. स्वयं भूखी रहकर बच्चे को खिलाना, स्वयं गीले में रहकर बच्चे को सूखे में रखना, अपने दुःख की परवाह न कर सदा बच्चे के सुख की चिन्ता केवल माँ ही कर सकती है।
                                                        'ए माँ तेरी सूरत से अलग भगवान् की सूरत क्या होगी ? जिसको नहीं देखा हमने कभी फिर उनकी जरूरत क्या होगी ?' भगवान् सब जगह नहीं रह सकते, इसलिए उसने माँ को बनाया ताकी उनकी प्रतिमूर्ति सदा-सर्वदा मेरे सामने उपस्थित रहे और मैं उन्हें हमेशा देख सकूं.

                                                                           "चाहें लाख करो तुम पूजा और तीरथ करो हजार, मात -पिता   को ठुकराया तो सब कुछ है बेकार"। सभी तीर्थ माँ के चरणों में है।

                                                                 'मात्रि  देवो भव।' "जननीजन्म्भूमिश्च स्वर्गादपि गरीयसी". माँ के विना मेरे अस्तित्व की कल्पना भी नहीं हो सकती.

                                                                   शीश देकर भी मैं माँ  के ऋण से उरिन नहीं हो सकता।

    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------  "हैप्पी  मदर्स डे".            

Countryside Maturity

In old time village people were very simple and great hospitable. ‘Atithi devo bhav- the guest is god’ was their main ideology. I have seen Paritoshjee in my village. He was famous for the warm welcome to unknown visitors. Very few want to host the unknown. But, he was special. Everybody knew his generosity. His kindness was famous in the area. Shelter-less persons gathered at his door and stayed there as long as they wished. He heartily welcomed all the guests. In the mango season, passers-by were compellingly fed mangoes and they were forcibly offered to take some mangoes for their family members. What a grand welcome! This type of cordiality is seldom found to-day. The cheater may misuse this type of generosity but, this type of heavenly character is the rarest. I have heard from my own ears a bhajaar (the person of a famous family wanders hither and thither in search of food and attends every occasion of joint feast without invitation) abusing Paritoshjee. Paritoshjee had put a condition that after taking food at his home, no guest should again eat at another house. A comedian type person forcibly fed the bhajaar some rice and fish curry just after the feast he had eaten at paritoshjee door. The comedian called Paritoshjee and showed him bhajaar eating. Paritoshjee banned him to come to his door again. That was the reason to abuse. But, banning did not last long. It was impossible for so generous person like Paritoshjee to bear distance of bhajaar. He went to bhajaar himself and invited him honorably to take food. Now the situation is completely changed. The urban people have become more simple than the rural. When I go home, I become astounded to see the cunningness of the rural. The evils of cities have come in the villages. Village youths have become liquor and drug-edicts. They are lying beside the road and in village market in drunken state. They are busy in gambling and prostitution. They are unnecessarily abusing and fighting. Majority of youths have become notorious frauds. The old generosity has disappeared and cunningness has captured their lives. Some of them have gone to big cities and are involved in crimes. An urban fraud went to a remote village. He had kept the old view about the rural people that they are very meek. He sat on a tea-shop and ordered for a special tea. The shopkeeper demanded some money to purchase sugar, tea-leaf and milk. He gave him a hundred rupee note. The seller prepared tea and gave him. He took tea and asked for the balance amount. The seller did not return and began to fight. The seller was a wrestler. He tore his clothes and beat him black and blue. Seeing him helpless, he fled. He went to another village and sat on a food shop. He ordered for food. He ate, washed his hands, gave the seller a thousand rupee note, and asked him to return the rest amount. Seeing him unknown, the seller did not return the balance amount, instead gave him a hard blow. Again he fled and saved his life. The visitor was a notorious fraud of a town. But here the situation was quite reverse. He went to another village. He had some fake notes. He mixed them with some good notes and gave a shopkeeper for exchange. The shopkeeper saw the notes and understood the fake notes. He exchanged his all money and gave him double other fake notes. The visitor spoke some words but the seller dragged him on the ground and snatched all his possessions. The visitor ran away and caught his ears to go to village again.

Tyakt Lajja Sukhee Bhavet.

Rani is very sentimental and broad. She is extreme gentle. There is no ‘no’ in her dictionary. She can bear all difficulties but cannot hurt anybody by mind, expression, or action. She always looks herself in the eyes of others. Her every action is based on the view ‘What others will think about her?’ This notion sometimes puts her in trouble but she is firm on her views. Her husband is working in railways. A railway quarter is allotted to him. People from mother’s side and in-law’s side most often come for medical aids in DMCH and other marketing purposes and stay in her quarter for months. Her quarter looks like an inn. She faces too much trouble in hosting the guests but she takes it as Almighty’s grace. Her husband sometimes murmurs but she never speaks a single word against the guests. Until a guest himself wants to depart, she cannot show any posture to show dishonor. This behavior puts her in economic crisis but she does not bother. Due to her nature, some persons are permanent guests. I remember one occasion when one of her husband’s close friends came with a new man. This man’s daughter lived in the same town. However, Rani’s warm welcome forced him to stay at her residence and he refused to go to his daughter’s home. Later on, whenever he visited the town he never stayed at his daughter’s residence and always halted at Rani’s home. This is one example. There are so many other events when she has gone in trouble and hosted known and unknown persons for long.
Nikky is one of the close friends of Rani. She is ready-witted. She is so clever and out spoken that a guest never dares to stay at her home. Sometimes, her in-laws come but soon depart due to her behavior. She can hardly offer a cup of tea and for that, you will have to hear so many abuses. Sometimes, she even starts fighting on minor matters. Who will dare to stay at such place where probablity of being abused and getting blows is more. So close persons also search another shelter. Her husband is a noble person. He is popular everywhere due to his nobleness but no one dares to visit his home due to his wife.