Mumbai Musings

We reached Mumbai on 9th Feb to attend the workshop conducted by NSDL on IT preparedness for GST on 10th and 11th. Mr Patra, my senior colleague and immediate boss wanted to have a darshan of Mahalaxmi on 10th evening after the workshop was over. We visited. The next day, on the 11th, he wanted to visit Siddhi Vinayak. While returning from Siddhi Vinayak temple in the evening after the darshan, he exclaimed, “Yesterday we visited Ma’laxmi, incidentally it was Friday, an auspicious day for visiting Maa and today, we visited Baba Vinayak.”
He was visibly pleased and satisfied. He described his feelings as if he were in a trance after the visit.

Last time I had visited Mumbai with my niece. She had to appear interview for Grade-B officer of Reserve Bank of India. On the day, after her interview was over by 3 pm, we went for sight-seeing to India Gate. The next day our train was at 10 in the night, so we had a full day at our hand. We went to Khandala.
During my last visit to Mumbai it did not strike me to visit Mahalaxmi or Siddhi Vinayak. I was even not conscious of the God and Goddess.

I am not a religious man, the names of Gods and Goddesses do not evoke devotion or the kind of religious feeling in me as they do to Mr Patra. During my school days I was under the influence of my teacher Kalindi Charan Jena, who was a professed communist. I had an overdose of Marxist clichés such as religion is opium to the masses, Religion and Gods are creation of the ruling class to exploit the proletariat, etc. The impact it had is still with me and perhaps, will remain till I die. I never do puja, do not relish going to a temple. If my wife and children are not at home and I am left alone, they request my neighbour’s wife or daughter to light at least an incense stick in our puja room; my wife never trusts me in the matters of Gods, Goddesses and worship.

On our way to India Gate I came across an Art Exhibition on the road side in the open space. We got down and saw the exhibition. It was theme based (I have posted a picture); I wished I would have spent some more time. I would have loved to see the exhibition, studied the arts, but my boss did not seem interested in such things and we did not have also much time for it.
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Security arrangements were made elaborately, the devotees/darshan seekers had to pass through security check and metal detector test. There was a long queue for the darshan of Siddhi Vinayak when we reached the temple around 5.20 pm. We stood in the queue. One person approached us and told if we paid Rs 150 each, he would take us inside avoiding the security,and enable our darshan without the travails of standing in the queue and wasting time in waiting. He warned darshan would be stopped at 6 pm and we might not be able to have our darshan. We did not agree to his proposal.

A few years back I had gone to Agra with my family. After we booked tickets to visit Taj Mahal, we had to stand in the queue for security check. The queue was more than a kilometre long and I reckoned it would take at least an hour to pass through the check. One person approached and suggested if we paid Rs 100 each he would take us inside avoiding the security check. I did not heed to his offer. He lowered the price and said Rs 70 would do. Still I did not listen. He further lowered the price to Rs 50. The person standing near me bargained and said, twenty. The person said, “The police shall take Rs 20 each, what shall I get? Make it thirty.” The person standing beside me agreed, paid Rs 30 for him and for each of his family members and went out of the queue.

The security arrangement is for ensuring terrorists not to sneak into and create mischief that would not only damage the shrines/monuments but also result in communal catastrophes. If a person of my kind can avoid security by bribing Rs 30 or 50, can’t a terrorist do the same?
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Among the friends working in Mumbai, I had close friendship with Sailendra, Radharaman and Ranjan during my college and university days. On reaching Mumbai on 9th, first I rang up Sailendra. He was in his office and seemed busy. He talked and suggested if I could drop in his home and told me how to go. I was put up in Odisha Bhavan in Navi Mumbai and his residence was somewhere in Dadar. I could go by taxi or catch the local train at Vasi. I told, I would try, but considering my schedule it was not possible. I stayed till 12th, but he did not remind me, perhaps, did not find time to talk to me till I left Mumbai.

I talked to Radharaman. He was also in his office and obviously busy. First he could not recognise me; he had not saved my number in his cell phone. While talking, he recognised aafter I self introduced, the phone went off and neither I nor he thought of reconnecting. On 11th he called me up. I was in a meeting. I told I would ring back during lunch. I rang up at 2 pm. His office was within two kms from Lower Parel where we had our meeting. He told that he would leave his office for home within ten minutes. It was Saturday, perhaps, he had half day off. I said we would meet next time I visit Mumbai, and switched off the phone.

I rang up Ranjan on 12th, the day I was to leave Mumbai for Cuttack. He responded to the call and seemed to have been peeved. I asked what he was doing. He replied he was sleeping. It was 8.45 am. I had already taken my breakfast. He invited me for lunch. But I was sorry for I had disturbed his Sunday morning sleep. I said, “Next time.” He switched off his cell phone and, perhaps, continued his interrupted sleep.

All the three friends are sincere and hard working. They work for banks and are successful in their profession and have also moved high in ranks in their respective banks. They have tight work schedule. They leave for office around seven or seven-thirty in the morning and reach home after nine in the night on the working days.
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A few days back, poet Rajendra Kishore Panda had posted in Facebook the most common dying regrets, as recorded by Bronnie Ware in her book titled The Top Five Regrets of the Dying-A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing. She was an Austrian nurse who had worked in palliative care, and had to spend with the patients during the last three to twelve weeks of their lives. The most common five dying regrets of her patients are
1.I wish I’d the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me
2.I wish I didn’t work so hard
3.I wish I’d the courage to express my feelings
4.I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends
5.I wish that I had let myself be happier

She concludes, “Life is a choice. It is your life. Choose consciously, choose wisely, choose honestly. Choose happiness”

I know I do not have choice; I shall have the same regrets at the time of my death. What’s about yours?
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