Magazine of March - 2010 - Rups.net

Silent I (eye) witnessSu d h a Ph i l a r, Be n g a l u r uMy favourtie quotable quote is: “The only thingthat a man can do for eight hours a day - day afterday, is work. You cannot eat eight hours a day, nordrink eight hours a day, nor make love for eighthours a day.” However, I would like to say thatapart from work, I can talk for eight hours a day, ormaybe more, day after day. Actually, that is what Ihave been doing for the last 65 years. I am sure I canenter the Guinness Book of World Records unlesssome politician surpasses my record.Finally, one day, I took pity on myself and decidedto take ‘maunvrat’. I prayed sincerely to the greatsaint Ramana Maharishi (who had mastered silenceand was known for his silent dialogue) to bless mewith the “Sound of Silence”. My inner voice gave mealarm signals, every now and then, not to pray for theimpossible. It said, “Observe, listen, learn and stop.Not until I am able to absorb others talk.” Thesewere the thoughts crossing my mind as I waited atthe Frankfurt airport for my flight to Bengaluru.It was a long, six-hour wait. I thought, this mightbe the right time for me to start my maunvrat becausemy husband was dozing away in the seat next tomine, and I hardly knew anybody around. I did notwant to let go of this chance and decided to keepmy mouth shut and silently witness the happeningsaround me.Well, most of the crowd around me was boundfor Bengaluru. Excitement was on the increase,moment to moment. For a minute, I almost forgotthat I was in Frankfurt because most of them wereconversing in Kannada, and it sounded very muchlike Bengaluru. Here are some of the comments thatI heard:‣ “This foreign trip was nice but it was like VIPimprisonment. Though this is a free country, ourmovements are restricted and we have to dependon others: Yeshtu andre, nammu Bengaluru …..(Whatever one may say, our place is Bengaluru).‣ “America has all the luxuries one can think of,but there is no 8 th Cross in this vast country,which I have been missing; in spite of having asix months’ visa, I am returning within one and ahalf month, hurting my children’s feelings.”‣ “What kind of a country is this, I say? One cannotsee a stray dog, or a cow, not even a donkey. Iseem to miss the stray dogs fighting or howling inthe night.”‣ “While in Bengaluru, I would send my husbandto get a packet of milk, rava or vermicelli. I wouldknow for sure that he would take an hour or so,meeting and talking to his neighbours or friendson the way. Otherwise, he would come in my waywhile I was doing my household work. This hasstarted after his retirement.”‣ “If you are going to put up at Malleswaram, whydon’t you go to Sri Sagar? You just have to say,‘Benne’ (Butter) and they will get tou a piping hotbutter masala dosa. And, do not miss their filtercoffee.You must not miss Veena Stores’ idli-vada too as itis the best in town. All this and much more comeswithin one dollar. Once I land, I am going to liveon Bengaluru specialties and enjoy myself.”‣ “For ethnic sarees and jewellery, you must goto Chikpet. You must haggle over the price,otherwise, they will fleece you.”My husband who was dozing all this while,woke up and went to get some coffee. As I raisedthe cup to have the first sip, the strong aromabrought nostalgic memories of Bengaluru. However,the Frankfurt coffee seemed to tell me, “Hum bhiBengaluru ki coffee se kam nahin.” So, if you happento wait at Frankfurt airport to catch a flight, don’tforget to drink some coffee.For a beginner like me to maintain maunvrat forsuch a long time is indeed a record. Of course, Ilearnt a lot and, most importantly, I listened a lotthus absorbing whatever the people around me weresaying. All in all, it seemed to be a journey of silencewith a fantastic beginning.I only hope that my friends and relatives are notaware of my “Sound of Silence” and don’t mistakeme for keeping my mouth shut. But, silently, I (eye)witness their …...Kanara Saraswat Vol. 91, No.3, March 201055