Happy Diwali!
Posted:15 Oct 2009 14:45
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| Happy Diwali Scottish Love in Action in India Hinduism someone once said is ‘a museum of religions’. No other religious tradition is so eclectic, so diversified in its theoretical premises as well as its practical expressions. It is the only major religion that has not been traced to a specific founder. In India mythology has always been very close to the actual life of the people. There are hundreds of myths about gods, goddesses, heroes, sages, demons, and natural phenomena like the sun and the moon, lakes, rivers, mountains, trees, flowers and animals. These myths are absorbed and remembered by the people even if they have no formal education. They are kept alive by fairs and festivals, and the daily round of religious ritual, during which myths are celebrated in folk songs, folk plays and dances. In classical Indian music too mythology provides the main subjects. Vishnu is, in the belief of his particular followers the highest of the gods. When he is asleep the universe is in a state of dissolution. When he wakes up the universe evolves. The cycle continues. Periodically however Vishnu descends to earth to protect truth and virtue and to destroy evil. His earlier avatars (descents) were in animal forms. In his seventh, eighth and ninth incarnations or descents, Vishnu appeared as Rama, Krishna and the Buddha respectively. Vishnu’s wife is Lakshmi, the goddess of prosperity. It is important to note that the personality and teachings of the Buddha have illuminated the lives of millions in Asia, but it was in India that the light was first kindled. The Buddha was born in India, and he lived and died there. His philosophy and teachings should be seen in the light of his Indian heritage. A thousand years after his death he was accepted as another incarnation of Vishnu, one of the highest gods in the Hindu pantheon. Diwali or Dipawali (literally a row of lights) is celebrated 20 days after the Dussera festival. Dussera is essentially the commemoration of the victory of the warrior-goddess Durga who has other names confusingly such as Sati, Parvati and Kali; she is also thought of as Devi, or Mahadevi – great goddess – the consort of Shiva, who is himself one of the three great principal gods, together with Vishnu and Brahma, the trimurthi or supreme trio in the Hindu belief. She had won a huge victory after a 10 day battle against the buffalo-demon Mahishasura and she is worshipped together with Rama – a god king - an incarnation of Vishnu, who had won an epic battle over Ravana, the ten-headed king of Lanka, who had abducted Rama’s wife, Sita. Rama and Sita are in popular terms the ideal heavenly couple, to which ordinary mortals may aspire. Dussera lasts for ten days culminating in an evening spectacle commemorating Rama’s victory symbolising the triumph of good over evil in his ten-day battle against Ravana. On the nine previous evenings the epic story the Ramalila has been narrated or presented in some form of drama, and the climax is on the tenth night when colourful effigies of Ravana, complete with curling moustaches, and princely ornaments, his son and his brother are burnt, setting off a fusillade of fireworks – and thus good will again prevail for another year! Continuing the story of Rama (Vishnu in an incarnation you may remember!), Diwali commemorates the hero-king’s return from voluntary exile. Twinkling oil lamps – divas – replaced latterly by candles, or even electric bulbs, light up every home, symbolising the lifting of spiritual darkness. Fireworks explode, there is great rejoicing and the ritual focuses on the worship of Lakshmi (wife of Vishnu, who is the goddess of wealth and prosperity) of whom Sita (who was rescued) was an incarnation! Diwali is the beginning of the new financial year and is particularly significant for traders and businessmen. Old books are closed, new accounts opened and there is a general emphasis on a fresh beginning. Lakshmi also symbolises purity and cleanliness and homes are cleaned and freshened to ensure her favour. Women, be they in the North or the South are renowned for their artistic skills in decorating the walls and doors and entrances of their homes. Diwali is the most important festival at which they paint the ground in front of the entrances. These drawings are meant to draw Lakshmi’s attention and she, being the goddess of wealth, likes drawings of certain themes in certain colours that praise her. Very often there is a simple and a quick mixing of white paste made from ground rice and water which is used to draw elephants and other designs on the walls and rangolis on the ground. The rangolis can be done with coloured powders or with flowers. It is a time of family gathering and fellowship with a warm welcome to visitors. Good food, particularly sweets – mitthai – are consumed in large quantities and the whole of India settles down to celebrate and enjoy the festivity. Indeed, on our flight which was fully booked, it was obvious that a great many of our fellow passengers, from the evidence of their hand luggage, were returning to spend Diwali with their respective families. I have given the most cursory of explanations because it would take a huge book to truly explain the festivals and rituals of the Hindu faith, and I am not best placed to do that despite my respect and recognition of that ancient system of belief and values. Waking up on Diwali morning everyone is wishing everyone else ‘Happy Diwali’ with affection and good humour. It is absolutely essential to greet everyone you meet that day and wish them well. For me this year I have particular thoughts for a very special Charity called Scottish Love in Action that was started ten years ago and does the most heart warming worthwhile job in the middle of India in Andhra Pradesh. I have written about the reality of child labour in India in my three books; in fact India has the largest number of child labourers under the age of 14 in the world engaged in hazardous occupations – 12.6 million of them according to Unicef figures. What I am saying is that in the past we in the developed countries were content to allow this form of ‘slavery and forced labour’ for centuries. Now in the 21st century India and other developing countries continue to have children hard at work deprived of their childhood. This happens because of poverty and destitution. This is a cruel fact. Those who come from the Dalit and Scheduled Castes communities pay an even greater price. Since the recent Indian General Election it was yet again announced that Indian children have a right to education, but so many are still deprived of so much. The National Commission for Child Rights, for example, which was established in 2007 and which is responsible for protecting India's 420 million children, has a staff of ten! A World Bank Report published in 2004 found that as many as 25 per cent of Indian teachers were absent at any one time - that, along with the high rates of child labour, helps to explain why about one third of India's 1.2 billion people cannot read or write, compared to the 9 per cent in China. Some non-governmental organisations place the numbers of children employed as domestic servants and at roadside eateries as high as 20 million. Since these children are paid a pittance it cannot really be said that they are supporting their families as is the common hymn and excuse; this is not family supporting employment but slavery really and because children can be exploited and bullied and beaten whereas supposedly adults could fight back. There is no moral defence of an economy that rests on these conditions. On the 15th August Graham and I were guests of the Indian Consul General to Scotland at India’s 62nd Anniversary of Independence. It was an enjoyable evening and I had the great pleasure of meeting Gillie Davidson MBE who is the founder of a most wonderful organisation called Scottish Love in Action. This year is the tenth anniversary of Scottish Love in Action. In July 1999 Gillie Davidson, a nurse from Edinburgh, and Brian Barron, a professor at Edinburgh University, led 23 members of the Qll youth group on a visit to the town of Tuni in Andhra Pradesh in order to help build a Home-cum-School for 120 homeless children. The children were being cared for by Dr Christopher Premdas, the founder of a local NGO called Nazareth Association for Social Awareness (NASA). He requested Qll’s help and they responded by raising over £28,000 for the project. Qll went to Tuni and helped construct what became the Light of Love Home. On their return from Tuni, Gillie, Brian and some of the members of Qll founded SLA to provide ongoing long term support for the children in partnership with Dr Premdas. In 2007 they responded to an emergency request from Dr Premdas to care for 57 destitute children in Hyderabad, the capital of Andhra Pradesh, whose Indian sponsor had been killed in a car accident. Together they are now enabled to feed, clothe, house, educate and give medical care to over 450 children in Tuni and over 50 in Hyderabad. Scots people are continuing to serve India even now. 50 years ago I had lived briefly in Andhra Pradesh and to this day I love Hyderabad as a city and last visited there in 2005. It is known that almost 70% of Andhra Pradesh’s population lives close to or below the official poverty line. In the East Godavri district of Andhra Pradesh the literacy rate for Dalits is estimated at 17% for males and 4% for females. Now in India it is through education that the children being supported and nurtured through the work of SLA will grow and make choices and find opportunities. Education is the greatest opportunity any of us can have. In India thankfully young people grasp that fact and most especially their parents in conventional families try to give them the opportunity ‘to learn how to learn’, whereas now sadly there is a whole tranche of society here in Scotland that appears to undervalue the idea of education and advancement and have very little aspiration because a benefit culture has perhaps robbed them of natural aspirations and ambition to better themselves. Gillie told me about her thrilling and joyful return to Tuni in Andhra Pradesh just before Christmas 2008. She and the Charity’s Development Manager Colin McRae returned to Tuni for the first time in three and a half years. Here is what she said “Over 500 children in their bare feet and tatty play-clothes lined up either side of the dry, earthen track, greeting us with clapping, singing, petals and sweet-smelling garlands. Words cannot describe the intense joy of seeing the children of SLA again, nor the ecstatic welcome we received. Over 500 children – the last time I was in Tuni there were only 370 – how the SLA Family has grown! The housing conditions have been greatly improved, especially for the boys. Also there has been great progress in standards of hygiene at the Home in Tuni, which is vital for the children’s health, with ten more toilets in the main School campus. It was so rewarding to see how the general health and nutrition of the children is improving due to medical care. SLA has embarked on an ambitious immunisation programme, providing protection against a whole range of common illnesses. It was so good to see all the boxes of vaccinations, now fridge-stored, ready to start the programme. There is now enough money to carry out this programme for all SLA children and to extend it to children in some of the poorest villages in the surrounding area. This has been made possible by something called ‘Fiona’s Immunisation Fund’, established by Dr Fiona Strachan, an Edinburgh doctor who lovingly asked her friends and family to establish the fund after her death. The visit to the Hyderabad Home-cum School was fascinating. Despite poor housing conditions the work being done there is excellent and we are determined to improve the housing conditions. A local doctor goes to the Home when he is needed which is hugely appreciated. All the children in the Hyderabad Home speak very good English due to the fact that there is a rule that they are only to speak English during the School day. Educationally there has been great progress; two highly experienced and motivated part-time headmasters joined forces with Sony our Administrative Director. Both come to the School at 7 am every day to oversee morning study, and then return in the evening to supervise the tutors, teachers and pupils. They also work during holidays and set timetables and study programmes, organise staff and pupils as well as dealing with the tutorial programme for intermediate college students. They are determined to raise the standard in the SLA School which is getting a good reputation in the district. Now, most exciting of all, there are five students in High Education. They are dignified, intelligent, liberated, young adults determined to work hard and contribute to a just society. What fine role models they are for all the other children! Their example says ‘You are a Dalit rejected by society, you can succeed!’…this is what our work is all about.” Those of us reading this take literacy and our education for granted, but truly it is education that will be the solutions for India’s poor. One may ask how will there be enough jobs to employ everyone should they have the abilities and aspirations, to which I reply India has the ability to find ways of employment for those who become educated. At Diwali when we celebrate the ancient wonderful story of good overcoming evil, when families come together to rejoice in their kinship, when those in business look to the promise of a new financial year…that is indeed the time for people to say to themselves What Can I Do for India…..let me Give or Give Back. Gillie said to me 'Diwali also we love and celebrate too ...there is something very special and beautiful about that festival for all the world ..........lighting candles being so significant all over the world.........it was Premdas who said to me that “it is better to light a candle than to blame the darkness, you have lit a candle are you going to let it go out?”........this was him throwing down the gauntlet and the challenge about the ongoing responsibility for the amazing children for whom we built the Home-cum-School. I say to ALL of YOU who have an interest in India - light a candle this Saturday for these little ones and see them flourish and grow and become beacons of confidence, good health and education that will help light India's path to great joy and achievement and success as a nation. Scottish Love in Action would love to hear from you and receive your financial help with their inspiring work. Gandhiji said, you may recall ‘If we each do a little then we together will achieve a lot….’ HAPPY DIWALI! SCOTTISH LOVE IN ACTION; enquiries@sla-india.org www.sla-india.org A registered Scottish Charity Charity No: SCO30516 Company No: SC280397 Aline is the author of India: The Peacock's Call, India: The Tiger's Roar and India: The Elephant's Blessing. On www.thepeacockscall.co.uk her own non commercial website and throughout her books she tries to promote worthwhile children's charities in India. |
