Monday, January 30, 2006

A Divine Request

The following was found, carved on a granite slab at the temple construction site:

Dear Mason, please do not build me a temple. I never asked for one. I came here into this stone that you wish to enshrine, of my own volition. I wish to enjoy the world as it is; its rains, its storms, its winter, its sunshine and its spring. I want to see all those who walk past on that road, not merely those who enter your temple with floral offerings for me. I am not only interested in roses and jasmines but I also want to see the bright pinks and muaves of wild flowers, which you people decided aren't good for me. I want to stretch under the sky and enjoy the breeze.
I suppose you might expect me to shoot your efforts down with lightening and disease in order to indicate this preference of mine, but I wished to appeal to your senses. Don't cut me off from the world I created.

16 comments:

  1. Anonymous12:33 PM

    Good one. Reminded me of 'Pushpavilaapam' that my teacher explained in school days.

    -S.

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  2. Dear Anon-S,
    I am not aware of Pushpavilaapam. DO share that info with us... Glad you liked this post! :-)

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  3. Anonymous2:16 PM

    The original telugu poem and translation can be found here.

    http://www.geology.ohio-state.edu/~bhattiprolu/personal/telugu/karunasree_pushpa.html

    -S.

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  4. Neat! I do love these short strong impact posts far more than strong impact longer ones :)

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  5. Gr8. And which temple was this?

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  6. appeal to the senses.

    God is truly great. Those lighning guys who like to smite people are just publicity hounds, jostling for inches with Veerappan.

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  7. And the Mason said,

    "Who has ever imprisoned you, O Lord? Do you really think I believe that you're simply in this stone or in that idol and not in the heart of every man, woman and child that ever lived? Do you think I do not know that you exist in every atom in every stone, inside or outside this temple? Or that you are the essence of the very colours, the flowers and the breeze you speak of?

    "I am but a poor mason, my Lord, and I know not why people would believe in you only through one stone, or one temple, instead of believing in you through All That Is. All I know is that You gave me the talent of building, and I took it upon myself to build, however imperfectly, in your image. Please forgive me, Lord, if my efforts are not in tune with my purpose in this world."

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  8. manan's reply- very interesting.

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  9. WOW - Manan :-) That was trully well said - awesome :-)

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  10. I am stuck in a lot of things but it would be impolite not to reply to the comments... so here goes:

    Dear P and Anon-S,
    Thank you. It served as wonderful reading.

    Dear E,
    Glad you liked it. :-)

    Dear G,
    I have to check my notes...
    ;-)

    Dear A,
    Hmmm! :-D

    Dear M,
    Wonderful rebuttal. I am sure I have seen your name before but am unable to recall with certainity. Are you by any chance the person who writes with Shivani on a blog I visited a while ago? BTW, God replied thus (email came in yesterday but I was really caught up in something else):

    "Dear Mason, Not once did I smite your efforts or your skill. Nor do I wish that you did something else. What people believe in and why they do so, is an interesting play I once started but it seems to have gone unamangeable for the players. My appeal was not in dismay of that.
    What you do, is a treat to me as well. But why a temple for me? All I say is that I do not want a temple for the idol in which I wish to dwell for a while. There are other things you can build, which do not imply forced reverence or contrived fear and respect, a hall open to the sky, crafted chambers and walls around me but not enclosing me... To create is a gift, but to create with purpose and respect is wisdom."

    Phew! I think the temple was constructed anyway...

    Dear W,
    I couldn't agree more with you! :-)

    Dear L,
    Indeed. Very well said, indeed. :-)

    Dear All,
    I might be off my blog for a while. Please do not liken absence to disinterest... :-)

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  11. Hoping you are in a mood to read. Whether good or bad - you judge. But for all its worth - Click here Hope its worth your while :-)

    I told you I'lllet you know when I do write down something ... But this I had written a couple of years back - thought of letting it out of the closet :-)

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  12. Anonymous1:52 PM

    I'm sure the temple was constructed anyway. I'm sure we'd shove him back in if he came out for fresh air, the way we sometimes imprison the love in our heart.

    Good post. :)

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  13. Beautiful thought!!! You have a Beautiful mind E :)

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  14. E - yes, i do contribute to dharma rain along with shivani. my post was no rebuttal - just a clarification from someone confused :) thanks for clarifying. i do appreciate the point - that we have managed to segregate the idea of God in our minds, when in reality, God, by definition is the un-segregated.

    W and L - thanks :)

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  15. Dear L,
    Will do.

    Dear FF,
    Yeah! Glad you liked this post :-)

    Dear X,
    :-) Glad it is to your taste...

    Dear M,
    Rebuttal is not necessarily in the tone of a debate. I meant it very positively and am sorry if the intent was missed. Glad that the email I got helped clarify things! ;-p

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  16. Anonymous1:46 PM

    It was definitely worth reading! I dont think we need to justify things all the while...

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