Tradishun

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There was one Brahmin family in our Village, Muthukur, which had a quaint custom:

Before the start of any religious function at their home, like Ganesh Puja, Saraswati Puja, Shraadh Ceremony... the kids of the household hunt for a neighborhood cat and bring her home. Mother will then bring out an age-old wickerwork basket from the attic and hide the cat under it till the function is over; thereafter the cat is fed with milk and payas and let go.

Everyone took it for granted that the custom is a sort of voodoo peculiar to the family.

But it turned out on investigation that their great-grandfather, an orthodox Brahmin, had a rare weakness for a pet cat. Since a cat is supposed to be not only inauspicious but a nuisance, trying to grab every holy thing and jump into his loving lap while he was doing worship, he would order that the cat be covered under a basket for the nonce.

The great-grandfather joined his ancestors long ago and the cat joined him after her nine lives; but the ritual became a tradition to be strictly followed by the household which no longer had pet cats; or dogs for that matter.

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AP was cruel to her Brahmin widows.

I myself knew of several of my grandmother generation whose heads were tonsured, and shaved every new moon day; and they were made to wear white or saffron saris covering their heads throughout the rest of their lives.

One newly widowed lady was waiting for the family-barber to arrive so that she could get her head shaved, and bath and Puja done, before she could eat.

But the FB was nowhere to be seen on the horizon.

Vexed, like Alice, she said to herself:

"If only my husband were alive, he would have fetched the barber in no time..."

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In 1983 I bought my scooter.

Our Agent took a hundred-rupee note from me and got the Learner's License from Midnapore without my having to go there.

Within the stipulated 3 months, he took me to Midnapore (rather it was the other way round) for my Driving Test. He assured me that I didn't have to prepare for the preliminary Viva in the morning before the Practicals in the afternoon, since he would coach me 10 minutes before my turn.

The highway signs were easy enough.

He then got up and demonstrated the hand signals:

Right hand held high pointing to the sky for caution that I would be stopping; horizontal for the right turn, waving for 'overtake'; doing a clockwise rotation for left turn and stuff.

I passed in the Viva @ Rs 100 again.

In 2000 I bought my Maruti Car.

By then the Viva was no longer waived for the Learner's License. I was required to take the Viva before I could get the LL.

I asked my Agent if the Viva for the car was any different than that for the scooter.

He said "No"; but it didn't matter...

But, I said, Maruti or any other car in the market then had blinkers for right and left turns, red light for braking, tail lights (and 'back-horns') for reversing...

He said it didn't matter...

But, I said, most other cars had AC on and the driver can't stretch his hands out and dance since all windows would be closed.

He said it didn't matter...

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Teachers of our generation took it for granted that every class room had a blackboard, duster, and chalk box, without which the room would be as naked as Eve (before she bit that apple).

Teachers were literally 'white-collar workers'...some had their hair also sprinkled with white chalk dust...some their noses...

Towards the end of my career at KGP I was required to teach a class of 350 students and the class room had a white screen (like our good old touring movie theaters) and an Overhead Projector.

I managed somehow but DB declined the sacrilege...

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