Go and take those Sweets

Recently,XYZ co. procured yet another building.And we were shifted to the new work-location.That means new cubicles,new furniture,new seating places,desks,switch-boards,pantry,coffee-machine,cafeteria,cabs,cab boarding timings etc etc etc.

Keeping in mind XYZ's well-known fascination for celebrating even the minutest of the occasions with great grandeur and splendor,we were welcomed at the respective floors by a huge crowd.That,obviously made us think that we had entered the wrong venue.In a matter of seconds we realized,that a big scale Lakshmi-Pooja was in progress.

We stood there with our heavy Laptop bags trying to figure out whether to remove our slippers or not and if Yes then,where to keep them.

It has been roughly 3 months since I have been with XYZ and this is the second time I have witnessed Pooja of such a magnanimous scale in the campus.The first-time was  a regular Pooja organized for particularly no-reason.I loved the Pooja no offence but I was glad there was a valid reason behind this one.

The remarkable thing about the prayer ceremony was the delectable Prashad that was served afterwards.Sweets made with pure cashew-nuts,dry-fruits and pure Ghee.

As any regular employee,I feel delighted when my company spends lavishly on Gifts and functions.Bangalore is a place where we meet and greet people from all parts of India and the world.Emphasizing the cultural  and religious diversity here,I already have friends  from all religions by now.

However,for the first time,I witnessed a rather eccentric situation when I refused to give my bowl of sweets to my different community friends thinking they were too lazy to get up and get their own.Only later did I realize that their reasons for not taking the eateries were different.

They didn't want to do so because they didn't consider it appropriate to take part in the Hindu-Pooja being the followers of another religion.

That led us to take part in a never ending discussion on secularism.

While accusations on PK followed by vandalization of theaters and posters in some parts of the country made no sense to me at all,this was something that had surpassed all levels of wonder.

           

                

Fist time ever in life being acquainted with something so minor yet impressionable brought us face-to-face with the problems of an orthodox mentality.

Living in a modern progressive world,when did we become so regressive?

Everyday we hear news of acrimonious war of words breaking out between political parties,restrictions being imposed on religion not just by social groups but also by political parties.

However,mere accusations of religious bias by politicians are motivated by a disinterested desire for truth.How can we blame other people when we ourselves aren't clean about secular thoughts?If we can't take sweets being distributed 20 steps away,that too not because we have diabetes or high blood pressure but because we have religionism running end to end in our veins,then God only knows who can help us.

And maybe due to that,for India,international recognition of it's free and secular society has always been hard to come by.With that mentality being imbibed in us from childhood,the question yet remains,are we ready to shun that outdated mindset and take the sweets from the stalls?

                  

Well,I am.