SANT RAMANAND – A TRIBUTE

Satsangat mil rahee-ai maaDha-o jaisay maDhup makheeraa.


Today, May 25, is the 2nd death anniversary of Sant Ramanand of Dera Sachkhandballan of Jalandhar (Punjab). I had written about Sant Ramanand in this Blog before and also about his tragic death in Vienna (Austria) in the aftermath of a gruesome shoot out in Guru Ravidass Gurudwara on May 24, 2009 by some fanatics and fundamentalists. It was a heinous crime not only against the communal peace and tranquility of the State of Punjab and the Indian society at large but also against humanity and also against the very tenants and lofty ideals of the great Gurus. Sant Ramanad, to my mind, was himself a virtual Sikh who believed not only in the mission and philosophy of the great Sikh Gurus including Guru Granth Saheb but also preached and imparted the knowledge of the Guruwani to the masses through Satsang for the spiritual well-being of the followers. Sant Ramanand was a spiritual Guru, keeping with the great Saints of the Dera Schkhandballan. The Dera has, and rightly so, become the nerve centre of the social and spiritual upliftment of the masses of the region and more so of the dalits and followers of the great Guru Ravidass. Sant Ramanand’s contribution in the process was great. His whole hearted involvement in the social, educational and spiritual emancipation of the poor masses belonging to the weaker sections of the society will be remembered in the years to come. Sant Ramanand was a harbinger of awakening and awareness among the dalits in the true spirit of Guru Gobind Singh’s philosophy “Soora so pehchaniye jo lade deen ke hait “He taught to the dalits and under privileged the Mantra of assertion for their rights. Perhaps these very things which were good for the establishment of an egalitarian society as the Sikh Gurus desired did not go well with the “Thekedars” of the society. Santa Ramanand paid the price by giving his life as he knew that the Azadi and Righteousness would be safe guarded only through fearless conduct and sacrifice. He was acting in accordance with the teachings of Guru Nanak, Guru Gobind, Guru Granth and also Guru Ravidass, the flag bearer of equality, fraternity and justice.

Sant Ramanand’s conduct in his life time and his contribution and sacrifice for the overall well being and welfare of the community and the society at large will be remembered and appreciated forever. But there are a few lessons which are to be learnt and a few questions which would require to be answered, if we are really want that the sacrifice of Sant Ramanand is not lost and is wasted. The lessons to be learnt are, to my mind – i) greater vigilance and sense of security is needed as the mission and programme of the community gains strength ii) the agenda of the community and that of the leaders may not be high-jacked by the self cantered and self appointed leaders who are hanging in and around the ‘ canters of awakening and action ‘ like the the spiritual deras iii) the inherent and resultant energy of the community which got amply demonstrated in the aftermath of the Vienna incident and the martyrdom of Sant Ramanand needs to be directed and channelized before it goes berserk and sense of fatigue sets in. iv) there is an urgent need to create and establish ‘think tanks’ which may provide much needed policy inputs and options before the community to avoid vacuum of direction and leadership which was visible in the wake of crisis after the tragic happenings of Vienna in May, 2009. Similarly, some questions which need to address urgently and immediately – i) what should be done to save and safe guard the much needed unity, particularly to defeat the dirty designs of the opponents who are much stronger and organized? ii) the questions related to cooperation or confrontation, which is likely, about the new sect/religion and of the vani/granth need to addressed keeping in view the overall harmony and peace in the society iii) the questions of spiritual, ethnic, social, legal, constitutional force and sanctions for the creation and propagation of the new sect/religion in the background of the struggle of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and Babu Mangu Ram in the contemporary times. I am a humble and ordinary member of the community and a follower of Guru Ravidass and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. The views expressed in this write up are personal and are free-wheeling which may serve as ‘food for thought ‘.

If we are able to consider and think on some of the issues raised in the preceding line, I would think that it is my sincere tribute to the memory of Sant Ramanad with whom I had the opportunity to interact and discuss some of these concerns in one of my meetings with him in Vienna itself in February 2008.

GREETINGS ON THE BUDDHA PURNIMA

Today is Buddha Purnima - the birth anniversary of Gautma the Buddha. It is day to be celebrated not only by the Buddhists all over the world but by all peace-loving and society oriented people. I am one among the lot. I take this opportunity to greet everyone and wish them peace and prosperity in the years to come.

India has a special meaning and significance for the Buddha and his teachings. India is blessed to make and give Prince Gautma as the Buddha and his mission and teachings to us to lead a meaningful life. These teaching are as potent and relevant today as these were before. It is a matter of great satisfaction that, in the contemporary times, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar revived Buddhism in India as the teachings of Mahatma Buddha are increasingly becoming more relevant in these days of tension and strife in the society. It is all the more gratifying that the imprint of Lord Buddha is clearly visible and available on the constitution of India and India's state insignia like the flag (dhamma chakra) and the natational emblem ( lions of the sarnath stupa). The credit goes to Dr. Ambedkar and Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru for reinstalling the glory of India by bringing back the touch of Buddhism to the land of its origin. Dr. Ambedkar not only embraced Buddhism himself but professed in no uncertain terms ' My social philosophy may said to be enshrined in three words: Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. I have derived these from the teachings of my master, the Buddha'. My personal touch and connection with the Buddha and the Buddha Purnima is simple - i) my daughter Vaishali was born on the Buddha Purnima Day. Her marriage ceremony also had an Buddhist input in the welcome ceremony of the Barat at the lobby of the President Hotel in Jalandhar conduct by a renowned Japanese Buddhist priest (Bhikhu ) D.S. Uchida. ii) my small house is located in the IFS Villas in Gautam Buddha Nagar ( Greater Noida ) in UP ( Hon'ble Chief Minister of UP Kumari Mayawat being a follower of Ambedkar also professes to be a Buddhist by mind and thinking and has done some good work in bringing back the legacy of Lord Buddha) iii) I am obliquely connected with the Buddha Vihara at my native place Bootan Mandi in Jalandhar. Infact, I was invited to be the lead speaker at todays ( May 17) function at the Vihara in Jalandhar but, unfortunately, I could not make it.

Let me conclude by recalling the three important aspects of Lord Buddha's teaching i.e. i) Lord take me to the embrace of the learned ( Buddha ) ii) Lord make me profess right conduct (Dhamma) and iii) Lord make me to live a social life in good company ( Sangha). This is basic mantra for ordinary people like us to be followed to live in peace and harmony. May Lard Buddha bless us.

THE DANCE OF DEMOCRACY and WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Today's Times of India termed the state elections in India as ' the dance of democracy '. It has been reported that out of the total population of 1.21 billion, with the four Chief Ministers - two incoming in the persona of Jayalalitha and Mamta Banerjee in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal respectively and two currently in position - Sheila Dikshit in Delhi and Mayawati in UP, 374.3 million people will come under the administraion in which the women would call the shorts. The forthcoming elections in UP are going to be important. It is to be seen whether Mayawati is able to retain power in the wake of all odds and pitfalls of caste politics. It will be yet another ' wonder of democracy ', as PM Narasimha Rao had put it when Maywati became the Chief Minister of UP for the first time. Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, though adversaries in their life times, would be very happy in the heavens on the changing power scenario in India through democratic ways and means. Yes, it is the dance of democracy.- good for the health of India.

It is gratifying to note that India produced, in the contemporary India, leaders like Sarojni Naidu, Sucheta Kriplani, Indira Gandhi. The threads have been picked up by Sonia , Mayawati, Jayalalitha, Mamta, Dikshit, Meira, Sushma, Shelja and many more. President of India is Pratibha Patil, the Head of State of the largest democracy of the world. It is likely that the next Vice President is also a women. I guess that it could be Meira Kumar, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Some of the important and coveted positions in diplomacy are occupied by women like Foreign Secretary Nriupma Rao, Ambassador to the USA Meira Shankar.

Yet another good thing to note and report is that in the Civil Services Examination, the results of which were declared a couple of days before, the first and the second positions in this arena have been snatched by women. The real empowerment is coming and coming fast and rightly so. Columnist M.J. Akbar as termed it, in one of his columns, ' a burst of feminine power not seen in India since Razia Sultan sat on the Delhi throne in the 13th century. So far so good.

THE MASS MEDIA and DALITS - SOME REFLECTIONS

I wrote about the share of dalits in the mass media sometime before in this blog The position remains and remains and of concern. Mass Media plays an important role in the process of empowerment – political, economic, social, cultural, spiritual and so on in the over all development of the society. The dalit community does not have this important instrument on its own and also does have an access to the Indian mass media which inherently is prejudiced and biased reflecting the caste based divisions of the society at large. The situation requires rectification. But nobody can do it except the community itself, the dalits themselves, of course with the support of the liberal segments of the society and the establishment.

I am not writing this not on the basis of any research but off the cuff, as I personally know and learnt through the process. Dr. B. R. Ambedkar was not oblivious of the importance of mass media. He started a periodical paper “ MOOK NAYAK” in the 30’s. I did not find anything more than this, particularly in Punjab. My father used to mention about the UJALA - an Urdu/Punjabi weekly or fortnightly which was published from Jalandhar in the 50’s. Kartara Ram Madhas, Pritam Ramdaspuri and some other enthusiasts were connected with the publication. The next came the BHEEM PATRIKA an Urdu, Punjabi and later in Hindi too. The publication still sustains, in spite of the fact that it used to be the mouthpiece of the then Republican Party which is no more the case. The Bheem Patrika now has an electronic edition also. The credit entirely goes to Lahori Ram Balley, its founder Editor who could manage to keep the flag flying through thick and thin. Balley is an intellectual and is a man of substance, no matter he could not succeed in politics. Balley Sahib started editing yet another weekly the KIRTI in Punjabi. I distinctly remember that I attended the inaugural function or the KIRTI and relished the palak pakoras and tea. In the 60’s yet another weekly rag-tag Ravidass Partrika appeared. Mangoo Ram Jaspal was its Editor. I understand it still has some presence. It is a matter of gratification that slowly the much needed awareness started dawning on the younger lot of the society. Some young activists of Bootan Mandi, my native place, launched AMBEDKAR TIMES, a weekly in Punjabi. Hans Raj Bhukha, Sagli Ram, Hussan Madhas (now Boudh) took the lead. But the effort could not be sustained financially and otherwise. I understand some other BSP activists like Jarnail Singh and C.L. Chumber also took the initiative and started the JANTAK LEHAR in the 70’s. But I think it was an half hearted effort. The motivation was in place but the requisite wherewithal to run a paper was not available.

The time is changing for the better. The community started growing in strength both educationally and financially. Some of them kissed success and prosperity abroad. Sant Ramanand of Dera Sachkhand Balan played a positive role. He not only started taking recourse to the mass media through cassettes and videos to spread the message of Guru Ravidass but also stated a weekly in Punjabi – BEGUMPUR SHEHAR. The Begumpur Shehar could find its readership among the dalit NRIs. The paper is doing fine, in a limited way, under its new Editor Sant Surinder Dass Bawa. I understand C.L. Chumber, a dedicated activist also edited a monthly KAUMI UDARIAN which is published from Jalandhar.. I don’t know weather it is still being published or no. But I must write and appreciate that Chumber Sahib is active and write regularly on the issues of interest and concern to the community. The more viable and successful venture belongs to Prem Chumber, brother of C.L. Chumber, in the USA. He picked up the threads and re-launched AMBEDKAR TIMES in California (USA). Apart from the e-edition of the paper in English, it has a good 32 page print edition in Punjabi which is available on the news stands and other distribution outlets in the major cities of the USA, Canada and Europe. I wish Prem Chumber and the Ambedkar Times further success.

It is a matter of satisfaction to note that, slowly but steadily, the community is grasping the idea. I have seen, of late, many websites and forums on the social network like the FACE BOOK, TWITTER etc. and also dedicated websites to the community affairs on the Internet. The recent entries, in this regard, which have come to notice are - the APNIMITTI which is edited and published by a young enthusiast Ajay Yadav from Jalandhar. It appears that his main objective is to support the BSP in its political agenda and the website www.upkaar.com being hosted and run by Roop Sidhu in the UAE. I have found the upkaar.com quite good and well maintained with a wide open community agenda. I wish the efforts of Roop Sidhu all success.

The things are happening. It is time that the community leaders should take a fresh look at the mass media requirements of the community. Any further neglect in this regard would be injurious to the health of the community. Let me conclude with a couplet of Mohd. Iqbal:

नहीं मिनत कसे ताबे सनिदन दास्ताँ मेरी; ख़ामोशी गुफ्तगू और बेज़ुबानी है जुबान मेरी,
यह कैसी ज़ुबाबंदी है सकी तेरी महफ़िल मैं, जहाँ तो बात करने को तरसती है जुबान मेरी !

OSAMA Bin LADEN

Osama Bin Laden is dead। The Tribune has aptly captioned the big news " Al - Qaida Loses its head and Pakistan its face ". The news and the reactions have reminded me of the great poet Mirja Ghalib.

The dead body of Osama Bin Laden has been consigned to the sea so that there is no funeral procession and grave which might become a destination for the followers of the dreaded leader of the fundamentalists. Ghalib's following couplet explained:

हुए मर के हम जो रुसवा; हुए क्यूँ न गरके दरया,
न कभी जनाज़ा उठता; न कहीं मजार होता !
The English translation by T.P. Issar:

A funeral, with those comments unkind; An epitaph rueing an affair,
All this ignominy of the one who is dead; I wish I had drowned instead.

Coming to the second aspect of the Tribune caption about the face of Pakistan, Pakistan position in the war against terror and its repeated protestations of innocence reminds one of Mirja Ghalib, in the wake of the killing of Osama Bin Laden in Abbotabad and other terrorists in our cities of Pakistan earlier and the safe heaven and sanctuaries to the terrorist leaders provided by Pakistan. The credibility of Pakistan has suffered yet another blow.

ये मस्सय्ले तस्सवुफ़ ; ये तेरा बयां ग़ालिब,
तुजे हम वली समजते; जो न वादा खुआर होता !

The English translation by T.P. Issar runs like this:

Ah Ghalib, the power of your words and your gift of a seeing eye !

These surely are the stuff of a saint, if only you had abstained.

Is it a co-incident that the death of Adolf Hitler was announced on May 1, 1945 and that of Osama Bin Laden on May 1, 2011. Nevertheless the May Day remains solemn.

Malice towards None - As I Feel -2

I continue with my disappointment with my people in Jalandhar. In spite of the fact that Guru Ravidass Jayanti was celebrated with a lot of fan fair and gusto, as usual like every year, by the people themselves but the so called leaders or organisers ( if there was one as the outpouring and participation was spontaneous by the masses) failed to add anything positive to smoothen the flow of humanity in the town in shape of Shoba Yatra and participation in the Kirtan Darbars and other related functions. I don't think that anybody deserves any credit for this except the people themselves. The high spirits and the enthusiasm among the followers of the great Guru was a clear indication of the growing power of the community and the space they had created for themselves in the society. But as the electricity generated cannot be stored and it has to be transmitted and used it is so for the spirit and energy of the human activity also. I only pray that the energy of the community is utilised and channelised to the larger good before the natural resultant fatigue sets in. Our leaders must understand that. I request for their consideration and action before it gets late.

I again went to Jalandhar in April. I mostly remained busy in settling down and getting my flat functional and did not try to specially reach out to my friends. The visit coincided with the Ambedkar Jayanti on April 14. Bootan Mandi again for almost 5 decades remained the centre for Ambedkar's mission and philosophy.I recall as a cherished memory when as a student I along with my father participated in the Jaloos ( Shoba Yatra) to observe the Jayanti which used to start from the Mandi. I was impressed by the speeches of Lahori Ram Balley and others like Charan Dass Nidhadak and also community songs by Lal Chand Kamla on the traditional Punjabi music instrument called Tumbi. The poetic flair and touch was given by Pritam Ramdaspuri and Jakhmi Jalandhari on the occasion. I distinctly remember the Qwali evenings at Bootan Mandi under the sarparasthi ( stwerdship ) of Kartara Ram Madhas and the nearby Ambedkar Bhawan. Till the 70's, unfortunately, Ambedkar did not find favour with common Congressman. He was considered a political leader of the political outfits opposed to the Congress. The situation changed and rightly so as the mission and work of Dr. Ambedkar was potent enough to embrace one and all of the oppressed segments of the society. The ground realities of the vote bank politics compelled the Congress and the others like BJP and Akalis not to neglect Ambedkar and sensivities attached to his name and work. The acceptability of Ambedkar and his recognition is great and more than ever. It is a matter of great satisfaction. But again the menace of selfish and limited agenda of the self appointed leaders and self seekers was prevailing. The Shoba Yatra started from Bootan Mandi was again a divided lot. Others joined on the way. I also participated but with a sense or remorse. The public participation was spontaneous but the political presence and participation was more symbolic and under somewhat compulsion. It was almost lifeless except the sound and fury of the hired Bandbaza. There was no slogans. There was no song and dance. The only difference from the old days to that of the new was that there were Langars on the way and on the conclusion of the Yatra. I think, it demonstrates economic wellbeing and prosperity of the community. The public meetings took the backstage and one or two meetings on the occasion were poorly attended. There are lessons to learn if we intend to remain in the reckoning. We may ignore Ambedkar but at our own perils. The leadership is much to be desired. The younger generation particularly the educated shall come forward. There is no other way. Let me close with an Urdu couplet:

तू पहले बात फिर बात का अंदाज़ पैदा कर;

फिर तुजे ज़माने में नज़र अंदाज़ कर नहीं सकता !

PS: Just today, I have seen a video on the Youtube of a function at the Ambedkar Technical Institute at Jalandhar. The bust of Ambedkar was washed with milk and water before it was garlanded. It is a good symbolism but we shall not get too ritualistic. That is what I feel.

Malice towards None - As I Feel

I retired from the Indian Foreign Service (IFS) on December 31, 2010. We returned to India in January, 2011 from Minsk from my last station of posting as Ambassador of India to Belarus. As a matter of routine, I tended to keep track of the community matters particularly of my home town Jalandhar. Though we have a flat at the IFS Apartments in Gurgaon to live in yet I thought of having a small establishment in Jalandhar too and acquired a flat at the Silver Residency Apartments at Nakodar Road ( renamed as Ambedkar Marg), near my native place Bootan Mandi. The idea was to integrate and associate myself with the community, as my post retirement activity, in whatever small way I may be able to do, in tandem and cooperation with my old colleagues and friends who are living in and around Bootan Mandi. I visited Jalandhar and as usual stayed with my brothers in Bootan Mandi in February, 2011. I was totally disappointed, to be frank, with the state of affairs and the behaviour of some of my friends and fellow Bootan Mandians whom I always held in high esteem. I tried to get in touch with them and establish contact. But to my utter surprise, the response was lopsided and rather negative. The community leadership was divided with their own personal agenda of either business interests or family feuds. It was an unfortunate situation which was detrimental to the interests of the society and community affairs. Obviously, I was not interested in joining the group politics but could not help associating myself with the fair and bonafide activities to some extent. One of the groups assumed and decided to completely ignore me and my presence on groundless assumptions. I could not get the chance to sit with them and speak my mind in spite of the fact i tried my best to send my message across with a view to strive for unity and togetherness. It was the height of self righteousness.

The major event in February was the Gurpurab - Guru Ravidass Jayanti. Bootan Mandi is considered to be the hub of the celebrations in the area and rightly so as Bootan Mandi always acted as the torch bearer or the flag bearer of the spiritual and social activism by the community. Guru Ravidass Dham, a nicely conceived project, was in utter neglect as the so called Kartadhartas (leaders) were fighting for control of the project for their selfish ends. The irony of the matter is that the Guru Ravidass Welfare and Education Trust which is headed by only one person for about a decade did not do anything in the past except chairing the functions arranged with public money and has neither any welfare scheme nor it has any educational project in hand. The name of the Trust itself has no justification rather it is negation of welfare and education.. It is some food for thought of some of my educated friends who are associated with the so called Trust.. The Dham, naturally, is the property of the community and shall be open to one and all. But I was told that the Seths who control the project allow or deny the access to the Guru Dham on their whims and fancies and political orientations. It shall be totally unacceptable. The Dham is not a personal property of any Seth or his/her cronies. I think a democratically elected Committee shall be formed and the project handed over to it. It will be unfortunate if the project gets stalled in the process because of the selfish agenda of the self seekers.

Even the great Guru has been divided। The Gurpurab was fragmented. The respective groups held separate functions including the Langar and the Shoba Yatra. The public money collected for the purpose by both the groups was spent mindlessly. The sense of one-up was prevailing which tended to increase heat and acrimony. I spoke at one of the functions and pleaded for unity in the larger interest of the society. But it seemed that the line of divide was getting deeper and bigger. The false ego and money power was getting stronger. The people and the society is bound to suffer and the struggle for empowerment of the dalit masses will get weak in the prevailing situation. The movement and mission of the Guru has been compromised by the so called followers themselves. The image of Bootan Mandi has been tarnished.May Guru Ravidass provide and grant us sense and sanity.

हर शाख पे उल्लू बैठें हैं अंजामें गुलिस्तान क्या होगा

(To be concluded)