Which Tune do you want to Dance?

(62)

“Hi guys!!!!!!!!!! So what news today? How was your day today?”

“One of my friend’s parent died, Rafael. Her mother was suffering from cancer for sometime. But she was inconsolable today. I do not know why, but I felt it was not fair for the child. It was really heart rending Rafael.”

“The lady was very spiritual too Rafael, and still, how did she contract the disease? I do not know, seeing all this, our little faith would go into thin air. What do you think Rafael?”

“I’m really sorry to hear about your friend’s situation, Rebecca and regarding faith in God, well we’ll have to look into it. Is it so delicate to go off thin air. Are you in a mood to hear a story?”

“Yes please, Rafael” All nodded.

“Good, now make yourself comfortable.” All nodded and sat on the grass, some stretched their legs. Some folded, according to their comfort.

“Long time back, in a boarding house, there was a girl of age 14, her name was Kalpana. She was actually an orphan. She was very good looking, talented,  but she was very very naughty. No one was able to control her. She used to steal, looking straight into our eyes and the same in telling lies too and the best part of the girl was, fall in love with boys, within a blink of an eye and out of it, never.”

“Wow!!!!!! that’s an amazing character. Then what’s her problem, Rafael?”

“Well she is in love with many boys in one go and was able to manage them all without one aware of the other at the very same time, sometimes she trapped brothers in her charm too at the same time.”

“Impressive. But was it a mixed boarding?”

“No, girls only and that too  sisters convent school. Well you people might know, how strict nuns could be, especially regarding the aspect of love and boys.” All nodded and smiled.

“Wow!!!!!! that’s simply superb. But why did she do that?”

“Well we are not going to that aspect of her nature. But she had this very good character, which I felt is her quality.”

“Really, what is it Rafael?”

“She kept secrets and never betrayed her friends even if it would put her in danger.”

“What a great quality, Rafael.”

“Yes but if she becomes an enemy, she could be the worst enemy, we could ever have.” All nodded.

“Great.”

“So one day, the warden came to know, that she is having an affair. The sister decided to check and make sure whether it was true. So she put some spies to watch Kalpana, it was not one or two, they were several of them.”

“Well, it’s a foregone conclusion, that the love affair has come to an end, right?”

“Unfortunately, no, because nobody could catch Kalpana in the act of talking with any of the boys.”

“Rafa……..el, you mean to say, just talking to boys as love?”

“Well, I would not say, talking is equal to love but when a lover talks, time just flies off and still, there is more topic to talk or even in silence too, they can sit for hours on end and still would like to be together, am I right?” All nodded “and added to that letters and gifts.” All nodded

“Yes Rafael, you are right, friends don’t have such long silences. If they are short of topics, they just bid goodbye and leave. True. But how come, she is able to do so clandestinely? or else, she might not have any affairs Rafael.” All nodded

“Well, that was what the sisters thought too but since the sister could not find any affairs going on in the confines of  the boarding, she asked Kalpana directly, expecting, she would negate any such notion.”

“Naturally Rafael, how can anybody acknowledge a love affair which is conducted so clandestinely.” All nodded.

“Well surprisingly,  she openly acknowledged it and she challenged her warden, “if you could catch me red handed in the act of sending a love letter. I’ll stop this nonsense of having several  love affairs in one go.”

“Oh!!!!!! what courage. The warden would have dropped dead. How old is she?”

“Yes, the warden went stock still. She just stood agape when she heard Kalapana ‘s open challenge and her age, 65 plus. In the inside it really shook her. But she accepted the challenge. She was always everywhere to catch the culprits red handed,  but to no avail. Then one day she decided to tackle the boy and his family. The parents were very angry with the boy. At that time Kalpana intervened and said, “Don’t scold him. he didn’t do anything wrong. I am the wrong one. I was the person who did all the wrong. Don’t harass him for no fault of his.”

“Well the boy is a goner for sure.  How much he might have respected Kalpana for not dragging him into the grime.” All nodded. “ Yes Rafael, Kalpana  indeed has an acumen to make a man feel precious, then what happened Rafael?”

“Well, the warden’s, that tactic too backfired. So she let the topic rest for sometime. Then after some days, another orphan came to the hostel and she became Kalpana’s best friend.  Kalpana  did really have full faith in her. She poured out her heart out to the new girl. But unfortunately, the new girl started betraying Kalpana. She passed on all the secrets of Kalpana to the warden”

“Oh!!!! how sad.”

“Yes it was sad and Kalpana knew about it, but still she didn’t get angry with her. I do not know why she did it, but Kalpana continued to pass her secrets to the betrayer and in the end she was caught red handed and she was thrown out of the hostel. Then later, the other hostellers said that they helped her in not being caught as, she used to post children in key points and they signaled when the sister arrived.”

“But one thing is sure, Rafael, whatever she did, she was perfect in her planning.  What do you think?”

“Yes, its true, but unfortunately, her life never was successful. She didn’t complete her studies because no one ever wanted to keep her with them and her character forced the people to throw her out forcing her  to move off, thus making her study at home.  In the 14 years, she might have shifted more than 10 hostels.”

“Oh!!!!!!!! how sad.” All nodded.

“And since she was an orphan, she had no family to go back. So she was literally alone and when asked, when she was packing her luggage to move off, “Whether she was sad to leave?”

“She shrugged and said, its life, my life. I do not have anything to gain or to lose or to say as my own. So its not a big deal.”

“Then she was asked, Do you feel sad, to let go of your love affairs?”

“She replied, I’ve been loved by men and boys my whole life, there is nothing different, they just have to be pampered and they are my slaves. So I feel all are same. So its no big deal, if I lose one, I can get many more.”

“Oops!!! that was a punch under the belt for the guys.” All smiled, the boys just shook their heads.

“And the last question the sister asked to Kalpana was a big blow for the betrayer.”

“What was it, Rafael?”

“She openly told Kalpana that her best friend betrayed her. How do you feel about it?”

“Don’t ask about my feeling, I feel you should have some feeling. What you are doing now is the most despicable thing sister, my friend had told it secretly  to you and you betrayed her and for the part of my knowing, I knew every single word of what she was saying. So don’t think you have hurt me . But at least try to respect your profession, Sr. you are a nun destined to serve God and I’m a sinner to the core.”

“Wow!!! what a dialogue. What will happen in the end Rafael?”

“Well, that was a turning point for her. She was kidnapped and the real hardships was what made her rethink of her priorities. It was a life and death situation and she came to know the waste of her existence.”

“Wasn’t she able to entrap the kidnappers in her charm?”

“Yes she did and they did fall to her charms. No one harmed her and one of them took her under her wings and returned to one of the hostels and asked her to behave properly and live nicely and promised, he would return, to collect her from the very hostel after her completion of studies.”

“Rafael, did he come? Did he keep his promise?”

“Yes he came and Kalpana was there, a very changed girl and completed her studies as she was a quick learner. She wrote the exams privately. Now she is pursuing her higher studies and seeing the kidnapper, she was surprised.”

“Why, what happened?”

“He too was a changed man, meeting Kalpana, he too had a hope to live.”

“Wow!!!! that’s really good.”

“Yes it is good, In the first part of Kalpana’s life, we see the hopelessness of her life.” All nodded. “That is what happens when we rely solely on our bodily needs. This body is really a myth, not real and this falsehood is created by our mind.”

“But why do you say like that Rafael? What do you mean by  myth?”

“Well, what are we made up of Ajay?”

“Atoms.”

“Good, now can you see atoms?”

“No.”

“Then are you real?”

“But..........., we are real Rafael in the sense as we can touch and feel and see, then how come we are not real?”

“Yes, that is what the devil can do, it can make you see.”

“Which devil, is it Lucifer, Rafael?”

“There is bigger one than those."

"Really? who?”

“Don’t be surprised, its we ourselves.”

“Rafael, do you mean to say me as myself, Rebecca?”

“Exactly, we are our own devils, just like the devil of Kalpana was her best friend, likewise, our devil is in our midst, our own mind.”

“But Rafael, how does our mind becomes the devil?”

 “Imagine you are sad.” All nodded. Now watch your imagination wanders.”

“Well we would think of all the instances of sadness occurred to us in our lives and the what would happen in near future and far after, am I right, Rafael”

“Perfectly Mark, your mind would create lots of scenaries to make you sad,  it would open the Aladdin’s cave of sadness bringing more sadness and that is what happened when your friend lost her mother, the others felt, how God was unfair to the mother, to the child and covering the hearts of those present there and those who heard about it into sadness, forcing the little hope they had in God throw away. But in real fact, when there is no body, then how would a person die?”

“But Rafael, we buried her just today.”

“Yes Rebecca, the only thing that could be is buried is our soul, which is buried deeply in the cage of the body and in a bunch of invisible cells. It really would like to break free of this body, and the devil of a mind, and reach the ocean of God soul, because we are the drop from this ocean. Its like reaching home, to family. So in fact this mother is very happy, because she was able to reach home, and unite with God soul, and be in eternal happiness and eternal love and eternal peace. Which is better, the sickness and pain and sadness,  or the other one, union with God Soul?”

“Well I’d rather have the other one, for sure. But how would my friend live without her mother?”

“Your friend  would live no problem, but the fact to look deep into is, how are you planning to live because you told you had less faith in God, which means you are more involved in the worldly problems.”

“True Rafael, I said that, but now I feel ashamed, how could I say that. Its so childish. When our whole existence is God full, then how did I say the little faith, I do not understand. But Rafael, thank you, you opened my eyes.”

“Yes Rebecca, we are spiritual beings and not human beings with beautiful structure, lustrous hair, great complexion, rich, fame, name, etc…..are temporary that would go, but the real you, the soul is what stays behind, it would never die and our existence is solely in God, just because you had a problem, don’t think its God’s creation. No, in truth, its we people who created it.” All nodded.

“Look into the eye of your mind and strongly say to your mind, if you can create problems, I have the power to break it and don’t ever get frightened, when problems come. If you fear, it will return. So don’t ever allow fear to rule you.”

“Thanks Rafael, that’s a good point. I’ll note it.” All nodded.

“But be sure, you can look into the eye of your mind, only if you are in the right path, where you do your work punctually, say the truth and do lots of good and pray. Then you can control your mind, or else, forget I ever said this, because you would be dancing to the tune of your own mind. So first decide to which tune do you want to dance, then you would be able to save yourself and have faith in God completely.” All nodded.

“So next time someone dies, cry for yourself, at least, they are lucky to have been relieved of worldly misery, who knows, how much we will have to go through to get the eternal rest?” All nodded.

“So Rebecca, how do you feel?”

“ I do not know Rafael, I think the devil is really holding me tightly, but I’ll surely control him before bed, no problem Rafael.”

 “Good. OK then, its time to say bye, we’ll meet tomorrow.” All nodded

...to be contd....(63)....

Until then... Take care.....Bye

Meena