MY MARRIAGE ANNIVERSARY

I was married on june 26th, 1958 and on the last this date a couple of days back, I completed the 56th anniversary of my married life. Some years back, when it was the golden jubilee, my children, all satisfactorily placed in life gathered and virtually we had a bash. Besides the feasts, there were exchanges of good gifts as well. I also distributed sweets liberally in my office. The main reason for my happiness was totally personal as there was an unfortunate tradition of losing first wife in my family. But this time it was completely on the low key as the wife is in the native village for last four months in connection with house construction. My son, daughters and grand children wished me telephonically as in the modern society nobody has time for these uneventful occasions. Since I have been doing all domestic chores including cooking for last four months, my wife could realize about my under compulsion stoic day-to-day life style. I am a diabetic and herself a cancer survivor, she knows that even on this auspicious occasion I shall not touch sweets. As such she advised me that on her request I should eat a mango. So my food for the day was ‘choora-dahi and aam’ and that was the only notable point of the day. June, particularly in north india is intolerably hot and everybody eagerly awaits the onset of the monsoon. I may have forgotten several things associated with my marriage but I never forget that hot and humid night. Despite this climatic pinprick, the 26th June been an eventful day in history. In1498, toothbrush was invented in 1892, and theNobel Laureate, Pearl S. buck was born. Emergency was imposed by Mrs Gandhi in 1975 and Narendra took the oath of the Prime Minister in 2014. My advice to the prospective bachelors is to give a chance to this remarkable date, due next year and oblige me by giving feedback if this experiment brings luck to you.

WINDOW ON WIDOWS

Earlier also I had put some posts in my blog regarding the pathetic life of widows who were rejected by their own near and dear and are compelled to live on the mercy of pilgrims in Varanasi and Vrindavan. Once again I am touching upon this topic because june 23 has been decided to be observesd as the World Widow Day. On this occasion a function was organized in the Press Club, new Delhi. Of course the guiding force was none else than the famous socio-sanitational movement leader, Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak at whose initiative, the problem of these ladies could be brought before the society. All of them are mothers of their children, some of them engaged in lucrative jobs. Imagine about such men who not only ill treated their mothers but also chased away from the family house which happened to be the property of these ladies. Utterly neglected these ladies, just on the verge of begging, have been living in a wretched condition. They sing bhajans in the temples of Varanasi and Vridavan and get hardly one time food in a day. Sociologists have comparatively found that the Devdasis of the temples in the South are also subjected to the same neglect and exploitation. Did any individual or political party come forward to improve their life conditions? While the people of different castes and religions are resorting to violent agitations to secure reservation in jobs, nobody thinks it necessary to have a similar facility for the widows also. Only the Sulabh has seriously taken up their cause. It is giving them Rs 2,000/- per month as stipend. There is a proper arrangement for their medical needs. They are being given vocational training so that they engage themselves in income-generating activities. With this support, the helpless women who were waiting for the death, are full of energy and long to live. They are celebrationg all traditional festivals like Holi, Diwali etc. In the Press Club function they decided to approach the new government to pass some law for their honourable living. I wish, we fence sitters should also come forward, lending a helping hand in their mission.

SANSKRITI SAMANVAY SAMMAN

I am proud of sharing with my FB friends that I stand honoured by a reputed cultural outfit. On June 19 evening, which happened to be the Martyrdom Day of Maharani Laxmibai, the Akhil Bhartiya Sarvbhasha Sanskriti Samanvay Samity organized Sham-e-Ghajal in the Azad Bhavan, New Delhi. The programme was also meant for the birth day of its National President Pandit Suresh Nirav, Editor, Kadambini which was to fall on the following day viz.June20. Besides Pt Nirav , Mrs Madhu Chaturvedi and myself, about half a dozen literary figures of Delhi were on the dias. The entire programme had three parts – honouring some literary persons followed by Hindi poetry recital and ghazal reading. I was one of the lucky persons selected for this great honour, christened as SANSKRITI SAMANVAY SAMMAN. On this occasion, the organizers offeerd me a shawl, framed recitation, Srifal, a gift and some literature including Mrs Madhu Chaturvedi’s book, Madhumas Saath Vasant.The citation in Hindi read: Shri Bageshwar jha,an established Maithili and Hindi poet is awarded Sanskriti Samanvay Samman, 2014 for his great creative contribution in the fields of literature, art, culture and journalism. Addressing the gathering, I thanked the organizers for selecting me for this prestigious recognition. I also congratulated Pt Nirav on the eve of his b-day and wished him a long life. On this occasion, the literateurs on the dias also released a monthly magazine named TO MEDIA. In the section of Hindi poetry recital I presented a poem on Gandhi entitled ‘Paribhasha ki Khoj’. Shri Ashok Jyoti of the Sulabh india also recited two touching mini poems. The Ghazal programme continued till 9.30 in the evening in which Pt Neerav, to put it hindi, ‘sama baandh diya’. The programme was preceded by high-tea and followed by dinner.

BOILING IRAQI CAULDRON

Under the stewardship of its military dictator, Saddam Hussain, Iraq was united and making allround progress. She could boast of a strong fighting force. But its bad days came when in early 1990s, it waged an unprovoked war on Iran. Shocked by this sudden aggression, Iran, a stronger country withstood the onslaught and ultimately Saddam was compelled to retrace his steps. On the heels of this misadventure, he attacked Kuwait on concocted issues. The USA intervened and once again Iraq had to lick the dust. Saddam was later captured and eliminated. The new govt tried to restore peace with the American assistance. However, the Arab watchers knew it well that the anti-American Sunni Jehadis would not allow the new regime to sit at rest. As a matter of fact, behind the recent upsurge in insurgency there, the guiding factors have been not any ideology but sectoral Islamic reasons. In Iraq, there are three major religious groups - majority Sunni, minority Shia and pro- Turkish Kurds. Saddam was a Sunni leader who kept the Shias suppressed. When Americans intervened to punish Saddam, the Shiites extended them their support. This was not liked by the rabid sunnis represented by the Al Qaeda, Taliban and other such divisive outfits. Since they were incapable of directly challenging a superpower, they waited for the US withdrawal to teach a bitter lesson to the Shiites. This situation is available to them now. But the issue has taken an international colour. Iran is supporting the local Shiites and has declared Jehad on the Sunnis. Though the Americans do not enjoy a cordial relationship with Iran, but internally, they are inclined towards the Iraqi Shia sect. On the other hand, the Saudi Arab is sympathetic to the Sunnis and has been financing their anti-Shia activities. For last one year, there have been repeated attacks on the Shia pilgrimages and their Friday rituals were mercilessly attacked killing hundreds of the faithful. They have captured some important towns in Nineveh province,Trkit, Mosul etc. The govt forces have launched punitive measures and some towns have been recaptured. However, this fire with possibilities of conflagraing and expanding is causing concern in the world. Petrol prices are bound to go up. The west has to think over some sterious ways to restore normalcy. The US, with the past experiences is not ready to get its fingers burnt again. However, it has dispatched its warships to the WesAsian waters. We sincerely wish that no escalation takes place and the stakeholders should settle the controversies through amicable dialogues.

A NEW MAITHILY BOOK

On June 12, 2014 by chance I came across a new Maithily publication which gave me a lot of satisfaction. The book ‘Mamta Gabae Mithilak Geet’by the scholarly author Sh Vidyanand Jha. The 469-page book is priced at Rs 951 only. It was published in 2012 by Saroj Sahitya Prakashan, Darbhanga. The author has also Jamshedpur connection which reminds me how my Maithily story collection ‘Hilkore” was published from there in 1973. Like ‘ashtadashpuraneshu’, this book has also 18 chapters touching upon almost all aspects of Maithil culture including philosophy, paintings, food, literature, festivals and handicrafts. It is an exhaustive work on all aspects of Mithila. I am personally obliged that in the literary section, as a writer in Maithily, my name has also been included with brief introduction on page No 275. Such literary works are much needed because with recognition at the highest level, the language requires literature on variegated topics. Honou and thanks to the author.