Religion in our daily life

Mumbai…

An Indian village is a mirror to the society and people in this country. The societal stratum is divided into various communities. The rich landlords own the lands and farms. The middle-class work for these landlords in administrative capacities. Then there are the poor farm-labourers who are the actual workers for those above them. These classes of people have their own civic systems, policies, and their own religious beliefs.

Bandra-Kurla Complex is the business village of Mumbai. The area is populated by corporate houses that own the jobs the middle class do as administrators, controlling the white-collar working class — glorified labourers.

Bandra-Kurla Complex

Had Bandra Kurla Complex been a dance floor, with the regulars grooving to their heart’s content in the middle, an educational institute building stood over like a bouncer at the entrance to this dance floor cum business village. This particular institute had recently shifted base to Bandra-Kurla Complex, taking up the role of a guard that checks the educational qualification of the people entering the ‘dance floor’.

Hundreds of young boys and girls at the cusp of adulthood stood in the campus of this institute. All of them wanted to get onto the dance floor. But the bouncer, the institute, just wouldn’t allow them. All of them had to clear the test and prove themselves worthy of dancing on the new dance floor.

And I stood there in the campus, with twenty kilograms of books to carry to Ghatkopar. The institute was well connected by transport systems, but there was no bus in sight at that particular moment. I was growing more irritated by the second in the sweltering heat of June. There was a bunch of rickshaw wallahs nearby. I pleaded with them to take me to my destination but they wouldn’t budge. For them, it was basic demand-supply calculation. So many students heading towards the railway station (not my destination), but not enough rickshaws. Finally, I decided to hire an Ola when one of the rickshaw wallahs walked over to me.

“Apka Roza chal raha hai?’ (Are you fasting for Ramzan?)

I suddenly became conscious of my beard.

“Uh… Hann. Ab kya kare, bhai, apne log bhi iss tarah dagaa dene lage hai…” (Yes. What to do, brother, even our own people have begun to backstab us…)

He replied: “Bhai mere, aisa mat bol. Chal, mai le chalta hu tujhe.” (My brother, don’t talk like that, I will take you to your destination.)

It is amazing how even in this business village; pockets of communities stick to each other and help their brethren on the basis of religion.

Mangalore…

A month after this incident, the apartment building where I lived hired a new security guard who moved into the watchman’s quarters on the ground floor with his family. The building was actually owned by the family of an old woman who lived on the fifth floor.

This old woman, right from the day I first saw her, looked like the female version of Peter Pettigrew (wormtail) from Harry Potter.

Peter Pettigrew

Like any pseudo-aristocrat, she would boss around the building all day. Everything was normal for a week since the new guard joined. Then, he was gone.

When I asked the old woman why she had removed that friendly looking chap, her answer was loud and clear.

“He is a Muslim. We cannot trust these people and their habits.”

Mangalore, again…

Today, I walked over to a store to buy paints and hire labourers to clean my rented house which I am vacating. I went to the lady at the counter and asked for the materials I needed. She replied in English, and I gladly continued the conversation in English. Her son, who was sitting nearby, put on a bright smile to his face as he saw me.

“Are you a Christian?”

I almost blurted out, ‘Of course not! I don’t believe in Gods and beings.’ But that would have been uncivil. Then I decided to say that I am a Hindu on paper.

But I just couldn’t say it. My mouth just wouldn’t move!

So, a second or two after he had finished asking the question, I just nodded my head in the affirmative.

At least I will get the job done.

Mangalore 01: Tipu Sultan’s Battery and Tannirbhavi Beach

In my twenty-two years of existence, I have lived in and visited numerous cities, spanning across the cultures of India. However, never have I felt at home, as I feel in my hometown of Mangalore. The delectable seafood with their enchanting aroma, the narrow winding streets fringed with coconut palms, the terracotta-tiled house rooftops, the pristine beaches and the calm religious places – all make it the city where I want to live, forever.

This is the scene right outside my ‘home cum office’ window.

In Karnataka, especially in the areas of Coorg and Mangalore, there is a resentment in the public with regards to the Karnataka government’s idea to hold a festival to commemorate Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary (November 20, 1750). The Sultan is widely known as one of the most powerful kings and battle commanders of India, with the British considering him to be their last big challenge during their invasion of India.

The resentment among the people, however, is about Tipu’s intolerance towards non-Muslims. Nothing is clear about the functioning and the thinking process of Tipu, who in my opinion was a ruler who went through a change of ideologies. Tipu was known to ransack temples and churches and convert non-Muslims. On the other hand, there is a proven account of Tipu helping rebuild the Sringeri Mutt after the Marathas (who themselves were proud Hindus) raided and destroyed it. I don’t have any opinion about this – maybe the Sringeri case was just a political move to appease the followers of Hindu religion? However, even the capital city of Tipu’s kingdom was and still is a place of religious importance for the followers of the Hindu religion. Of what I know, he used to consult astrologers and even did rituals at the Sree Ranganatha Swami temple in Mysore. Maybe, he didn’t attack temples and churches in the areas which were already controlled by him, and destroyed those in the kingdoms he was invading to show that he was their new ruler? Maybe, he saw that the only way to defeat the British is to stop being communal, and unite against the common enemy?

Okay, Tipu Sultan was a complicated man. All that said and done, there is no doubt that he was an astute battle commander with artillery about a century ahead of its time. The British, though, had weapons that are more intellectual: politics and economics.

I made a trip to Sultan Battery in Mangalore, to have a look at the famous battery situated at the banks of the Gurupura River, which Tipu used effectively while battling the invaders, especially the British. The Sultan’s Battery used to be a unit of guns, mortars, rockets and missiles that would work as a single machinery while battling battle ships and enemies invading from the sea.

Sultan Battery: The structure built in 1784 A.D., reportedly from the stones of the 23 churches that Tipu destroyed in his 15-year imprisonment of Mangalorean Catholics.

The cannons and rockets have vanished.

So, if a cannon is placed in one of the gaps, this is how a target would look like…

And this is all that would be visible to the target.

The battery is situated a short distance ahead of the point where the Gurupura river meets the Arabian Sea. This is also the headland of the Mangalore Port. (NMPT: New Mangalore Port Trust)

Palm trees at the other side of the river, opposite the Battery.

I decided to take a ferry across the river, which cost me a mere Rs. 5 for a trip.

At the ferry point, I observed this trawler stationed in all its glory.

Ah! This is how they move!

The closest I have ever been to look like Jack at the tip of the Titanic.

While in the ferry, I spotted this guy (gal?) atop a trawler.

More palm trees in the banks of the river!

After the ferry ride, I walked some 3 minutes across this hamlet to reach…

…Tannirbhavi Beach!

I love it when they rise…

… and rise higher…

… and then crash!

In case you are interested to watch it in action, here is a 9-second video:

Am I the only one who loves to just sit and watch this?

This gives you an idea about how clean the water is… 

The bigger ones are very tasty and a must have treat in Mangalore.

A practice I have stuck to at each of my beach visits. I have done this at Juhu (Mumbai), Miramar (Panjim), Calicut, Kanyakumari, Marina (Madras) and now at Tannirbhavi (Mangalore).

If you are tired of visiting Goa, why not try Mangalore?

The Sultan Battery is situated approximately 4 KMs away from the main city. The place is open all the time, of course. There are numerous city buses (Bus No. 16) that ply to and fro between State Bank (main city) and Sultan Battery/Tannirbhavi Beach. The last ferry across the river is between 7:00 PM and 7:20 PM. A bus ride from the main city to the Battery/Beach costs less than Rs. 10 (one-way) and the ferry ticket costs Rs. 5 (one-way). There are numerous stalls serving eatables in the hamlet across the river, around the Beach.

You are free to use the images, with due credits to the author.