A saying goes... 'With Ram in your heart, you don't have to look for places where he is and where he is not!' At one look, it seems to make a lot of sense; that God is within you, you decide your fate, you sow the seeds, and you reap the benefits or wallow in misery. That you have to be confident of your belief in the Almighty that nothing can sway you from his path of righteousness. That whatever people say, your communication with your Maker is so strong and personal. And you do not need to show your piety through mammoth structures to awe the non-believing others.I guess this is what the dwellers of the land, which later became known as Hindustan, thought when the first wave of foreigners came with the good news. They assumed that the newcomers indeed had another path to approach the truth. After all, after aeons of philosophising, pontificating and searching, the natives had come nowhere near the answer. Perhaps, the newcomers could help. Come, come, the more, the merrier. Thus arrived in droves, more messengers of peace with their own scriptures.
The dwellers held the ownership of the land whilst the visitors, the holy book. Let us close our eyes in prayer, they said. Everyone followed suit. To everyone's amazement, when they opened their gaze, the deed was with the guests and the inhabitants the faith (the book). Still, they said, the richness of the world is for all to share.
How the role reversed. The sojourners dictated what the truth is and the natives' archaic thoughts were vilified. Still, inclusion was the order.
Fast forward. The old ideologies were scorned, ridiculed and made to look stupid. Newer generations went agape in awe of the visitors, now rulers' 'civilisation'.
In this midst, natives' try to rekindle the thoughts of the good old glory days of the forefathers. Unfortunately, the fell into the same trap as the conquerors. They insist that theirs is the only truth and others' deluded. And the childish play of sibling rivalry continues. One brother trying to outshine the other. The 'father' just smiles and thinks to himself, "How can I love my right eye over the left?"
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