Bapu146;s prayers

The two big Bapu dates, of course, are October 2 and January 30. But January 29 is a poignant precursor to January 30 when Bapu8217;s favou...

The two big Bapu dates, of course, are October 2 and January 30. But January 29 is a poignant precursor to January 30 when Bapu8217;s favourite hymn Abide With Me is played by the massed fauji bands towards the end of Beating the Retreat in Vijay Chowk, New Delhi. It was so stunning in my childhood pre-security days, when leaders drove freely about in open jeeps. The dramatic ramparts of North Block and South Block on Raisina Hill, the sheltering sky, the camels in silhouette under the baradaris and the deep, gruff bassoon holding the base for the terrible beauty of this hymn it was played and sung on board the sinking Titanic in 1912. Bells in hidden corners of the presidential palace pealed between verses. In that huge hush, it was not unusual, between one8217;s own rapid blinks, to see stern, medal-festooned and quite magnificent uncles do some blinking of their own. The words go: Abide with me, fast falls the even tide/The darkness deepens, Lord, with me abide/When other helpers fail and comforts flee/Help of the helpless, O abide with me.

Swift to its close ebbs out life8217;s little day/Earth8217;s joys grow dim, its glories pass away/Change and decay in all around I see/O Thou who changest not, abide with me.

Don8217;t you think Bapu had every need of such a supplication? Because look at the audacity of his everyday prayer, called Mangal Kaamna A Wish for Well-being: Sabhi vahaan sukhi hovein, sabhi swasth nirog hon/ Sabhi mangalta dekhe, na kise koi dukh ho/Rajya chahun nahin swarg chahun nahin/Mukti ki neend mein kya maza hai/Deen ke dukh bhav-bhav mitaya karoon/Deenbandhon, mujhe yahi var do. 8216;May all be happy and of good health/May all prosper and none be sad/I need no kingdom, nor even heaven, nor shall I sleep happy 8216;liberated8217;/May I wipe out the sorrows of my people/Ye gods, grant me this 8212; just this8217;.

It reminds me of a frightening scene in Valmiki8217;s Ramayana, Aranya Kandam The Forests. Ravana has just borne Sita away to Lanka. He goes into his royal apartments where Sita is first consigned, eager to see her. The ancient poet describes her so: 8220;Utterly helpless, she was like a tiny boat on the open seas, tossed about by storm winds8221; Translation, Arshiya Sattar, Viking, 1996. Ravana bribes her, begs her, even threatens to have her killed and cooked for breakfast if she refuses. Frail Sita places a blade of grass between herself and Ravana: 8220;You can imprison and injure my earthly body. But I have no desire to protect it. What I cannot bear is the shame that has been heaped on me8221;. Bapu8217;s prayer is no less gutsy. One frail man with a sky-filling vision.