Arm of a stubborn yogi

Arm of a stubborn yogi

A Story by hardeep sabharwal

If you read yesterday’s newspaper, you must have seen the item about the yogi. No, it wasn’t on the front page as it is not news of national interest; nor is it related to any romantic or sensational Bollywood event. It is not on the second page either, where normally we find the remains of items from the front page. The third and fourth pages are for classifieds, matrimonial notices and advertisements for sex pills. Perusing those pages you might get the impression that the whole world is impotent, or soon will be. The fifth page contains news about state politics. Pages six and seven are for editorials and articles about doings in the lower and upper houses of parliament. And then comes page eight, where you can read the less significant and sometimes bizarre news, which seems to be just a page-filler. Pages nine and ten are reserved for business and the economy; page eleven for sports and page twelve is for pictures of celebs and other gossip. So let’s return to page eight, the upper left corner, where you will find news about a yogi from the Himalayas and his upraised arm. This yogi has held his arm in that position for thirty years.

Thirty years! I wondered. As if they were thirty hours.

"Have you read this?" I asked my brother. 

"Yes," he said.

It must be very painful, I thought.

As the yogi said, initially it was very painful, but god helped him and finally he succeeded.

"What do you think?" I asked. 

"It’s nonsense," he said. "Look at the picture, the arm looks too thin. It looks like all the ligaments have died. It’s lifeless; it can never return to its original position. It’s a dead arm now and the question is, what does he gain by doing that. Nothing."

I looked at my father; his view was the same.

"It is blind faith and nothing else. You can’t achieve anything that way. It’s useless."

"No!” I protested. "You can’t say what he’s achieved by holding his arm upright continuously year after year. If we look at people that way nothing can be judged. Can one say what Bill Gates has achieved by becoming one of the richest people in the world? Is material success everything? No, there are many other things also in life. We cannot measure success merely in terms of material losses and gains. So, only the yogi can tell us what he has achieved."

They did not argue, knowing my nature, and busied themselves with their work.

Thirty years, I wondered. I am 36 years old now. What have I achieved in life? I could ask. I have no answer now, but perhaps time will tell.

And then I remembered that exactly thirty years ago we moved to Punjab from Delhi, after surviving the 1984 Sikh massacre in Delhi, following the assassination of then prime minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards.

Some 3,000 Sikhs (and another 8,000 in other parts of India) were killed, burned alive, their properties looted and families destroyed by the mob in New Delhi, which was openly supported by police and leaders of the Congress Party.

"When a big tree falls, the earth shakes," pronounced Gandhi’s successor, Indira’s son Rajiv.

This was the only acknowledgement by the government of India of what had happened. As if it were a sectarian government and the prime minister did not represent all Indians.

After that it became an issue in every election. We demand justice for the victims of '84,” the opposition parties said. “It’s a national shame…” Blah blah blah. But they forgot about this “shame” for the next five years, until the next election.

Sometimes I feel that the issue is a cold-blooded animal that hibernates for five years and awakens only when the election heat is on.

Jaswinder rang me on the day the court sentenced the perpetrators of the 2002 Gujarat riots. This was good news.

Maybe someday there will be justice for the victims of '84?

But these hopes are fading, as thirty years have passed and not a single perpetrator has been sentenced by the courts, although there are clear indications of involvement of senior Congress leaders and police officials.

My thoughts were disturbed by Satnam Singh beeping his horn on his scooter.

"Any news?"

"Nothing, Uncle," I said.

"I’ve been to the PUDA [Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority] office..."

He began narrating what happened at the office, where he had inquired about allotting plots of land or flats to the thousands of survivors of the massacre.

Satnam Singh is one of the survivors and he is struggling hard for the rehabilitation of those like himself who have received no compensation or relief from the Punjab government.

“I wonder whether the Punjab government will give us anything despite repeated demands from the High Court.”

"Nothing will happen, Uncle," I said.

I remembered the day when the CBI filed charges against Congress Party politician Sajjan Kumar. Satnam Singh had brought us the news

"And what about other Congress Party men like Jagdish Tytler?" I asked.

"Let's see," he said.

"Nothing is going to happen; years have passed. Have we seen any justice done. There is no hope," I said in frustration.

"Yes, we all know that no justice has been done and perhaps we will never see it done. Two more generations have been born in the meantime. Our generation is old now. But don't say  that about hope. Hope is life, my son, and our hope for justice will never die; our struggle for justice is not worthless."

I was speechless.

My heart was filled with respect for him and for all the victims and people who are struggling for justice with at least some hope of getting it. Their voices are not dumb; they are not dead.

I turned to the newspaper again and looked at the picture of the yogi, with his upraised arm. It seemed so weak, so thin, but it did not look dead to me; it was still alive. It came to me that this upraised arm was a symbol of all the people in the world who are struggling for justice, no matter what their struggle, wherever they are, and whatever their race or religion. The voices of those demanding justice may be thin and meek, but still they are alive and have hope; they can't be dead, just as the upraised arm of the yogi is not.




© 2015 hardeep sabharwal


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Featured Review

not only is this well written, it is engaging, moving, inspiring, and motivational.. I love the way you wrapped it up into a spiritual enlightening, educational, and inspirational bow at the end.. it flowed and came together beautifully.. your bright spirit always casts such a warm light on to the page when you write, and this was no exception.. compassion, values, courage, and strength were highlighted in this skillful piece.. I really enjoyed. Awesome job my friend..

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

hardeep sabharwal

9 Years Ago

Thank you so much, I m glad you liked it



Reviews

This is very well written, I enjoy the way you bring it full circle. Actually reminds me of the indigenous story tellers around here. i would suggest, for those of us who may not have as personal connection with the events described as the narrator or his father and uncle, that you tell us what his uncle experienced, show it a bit, so we are more fully invested. Thank you for sharing this inspiring piece.



Posted 7 Years Ago


hardeep sabharwal

7 Years Ago

Thank you so much S. Mi
This is a well written story with a beautiful meaning. I loved the thoughts of the character as well. I would love to read more from you.

Posted 7 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

hardeep sabharwal

7 Years Ago

Thank you so much
great job. I love how you kept my interest. very captivating. thank you for sharing

Posted 8 Years Ago


hardeep sabharwal

8 Years Ago

Thank you so much friend
You have done some real mature work here, friend. Your thought process came like a bang, from arm of the yogi to the justice and ray of hope. Brilliant. Keep it up.

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

hardeep sabharwal

9 Years Ago

Thank you so much Mayank
This is very well written and an engaging essay to read. Well done.

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

hardeep sabharwal

9 Years Ago

Thank you so much MomzillaNC
MomzillaNC

9 Years Ago

yw :)
I had read it on other platform as well, but this is one of the most straightforward and stirring write I came across in a long time.

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

hardeep sabharwal

9 Years Ago

Thank you so much Avinash for your encouraging words
not only is this well written, it is engaging, moving, inspiring, and motivational.. I love the way you wrapped it up into a spiritual enlightening, educational, and inspirational bow at the end.. it flowed and came together beautifully.. your bright spirit always casts such a warm light on to the page when you write, and this was no exception.. compassion, values, courage, and strength were highlighted in this skillful piece.. I really enjoyed. Awesome job my friend..

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

hardeep sabharwal

9 Years Ago

Thank you so much, I m glad you liked it
Hardeep you have penned a remarkable story or an article that would be easily saleable to any editorial magazine or newspaper, it has given me an insight into the story of the man with the upraised arm which i first heard about some 25 years ago, along with the history you put into this it makes an enlightening and extremely interesting write, thank you :)

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

hardeep sabharwal

9 Years Ago

Thanks a lot sir for the praise and encouragement, Richard sir
its a good story to recognize your faith or hope about something. great writing.

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

hardeep sabharwal

9 Years Ago

Thank you so much :)
You have correctly pointed out that the voices of the people struggling for justice are not dumb..hope has kept them alive. This true for the victims of the 1984 riots as well as those inflicted with the loss during various bomb blasts in our country and also of the rape and acid attack survivors. That yogi's arm is basically a symbol for all of their voices as so beautifully pointed out by you in this article.
Let's pray that this Hope never vanishes from the hearts of the people.
A wonderful write Hardeep!


Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

hardeep sabharwal

9 Years Ago

Thank you so much Arshia for a nice analysis and review

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Added on March 3, 2015
Last Updated on March 10, 2015

Author

hardeep sabharwal
hardeep sabharwal

patiala , punjab , India



About
Hardeep Sabharwal describes himself as person of few words. He is one of millions of middle class Indians who do not have any ideology; they only want to live a peaceful life. The thing that hurts him.. more..

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