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Caesar: The ides of March are come.
Soothsayer: Ay, Caesar; but not gone.
...........................Julius Ceasar (3.1.1)
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I love superstitions: they are so cute, as long as they don't bind us with steel chains hand and foot.
And there are ever so many!
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Date: Early April 1995
Day: Good Friday
Venue: Board Room, IIT KGP
Agenda: History of Science & Technology Course
Pleasantly warm sunny afternoon. All Professors of the Course awaiting arrival of our Director held up in some other Meeting.
Dignified silence.
I watch the new color scheme of the walls, latest bust of B C Roy, riot of yellow, blue and red spring flowers on the boughs through the huge plate glass window.
And get bored.
I take a head-count and find we are 12. I whisper this significant coincidence into the ear of my neighbor VR (sadly no more).
He guffaws loudly shattering the glassy silence into bits and pieces. Everyone curious. VR being the ever-naughty VR announces loudly:
"GP says we are the 12 disciples awaiting arrival of our Jesus"
A couple of youthful Profs chuckle silently in their sleeves. The Dean and Seniors are not amused. But I am sure that our learned Director who walks in would love it.
Sigh! Not even VR is bold enough to repeat the Good Friday Joke!
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2007:
Marriage alliance of our only son, Sonoo, settled in the orthodox Hindu Brahmin fashion in which marriage is like a blind-date for the couple, arranged by elders. The prospective bride and groom met only once for half an hour in public in May. The wedding was scheduled for next February, a long long wait.
In September the Bride, Sailaja, and her father arrive in Hyderabad and my wife, myself and Sonoo were invited for a cup of Tea at their brother's place. Bride and groom obviously dying to have another peek at each other.
Sonoo was raring to go.
I told my foal that go he will, but he should buy some trinket as a gift to his would-be, as a starter.
He bought an expensive wrist-watch to impress everyone.
After a round of Tea, I signaled to my son he hand over the gift-wrapped packet to Sailaja, which he did rather coyly. She was dying to see what was in it. And spent a suspenseful 2 minutes unwrapping the box delicately.
And was charmed. My wife asked her to wear it and show it off to all.
As she was about to do so, I found her embarrassed father keenly looking at HIS watch mutely.
I shouted: "Stop" to Sailaja.
Sonoo couldn't make out why, but Sailaja looked at her father and could guess.
Sonoo was born and brought up in Bengal and I didn't teach him our Hyderabadi superstitions; he must have learned enough Bengali ones from his friends.
Sailaja's father was relieved at my shout and beamed.
We were passing through the last moments of an inauspicious hour-and-half interval for that Sunday, called Raahu Kaalam.
After a few minutes, I shouted again: GO!
And then it was Sailaja beaming with a gold-coated Joy around her bridal wrist.
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I then decided to teach my son what my father taught me about this dreadful Raahu Kaalam during which any new and gainful activity is to be avoided at any cost in our Province AP.
It came as a surprise to me that even Muslims here follow this heathen custom.
A very hot and humid afternoon here. My mother and I were alone. She was unwell, it was dreadfully hot and unlivable whenever the Power was shut down for 3 long hours in the afternoon: fans wouldn't work and my mother, an 86-year-old stubbornly independent lady didn't like that she should be served by me, fanning her with a hand-fan made of palm leaves.
She bristled and ultimately yielded to my long-standing offer to install a rather expensive Inverter (Stand-by Power Back-up).
Within hours I bought the best available kit and fetched our Electrician, Zakir, an orthodox Muslim friend of mine with flowing beard and a white Kufi skull cap; with all his electrical accessories to rig it up.
And he came, squatted on the floor, and was wiring the switches, fuses, and jewel lamps leisurely and twiddling his thumbs while I was getting worked up and asked him why not he finish the job prompto before the Sun goes down.
He smiled and shyly confessed he was waiting for the dreaded Raahu Kaalam to elapse in another fifteen minutes.
I was stunned and wondered jokingly why a devout Muslim like him should care for a kafir superstition.
And he quietly said that he would not take any chances with 220 Volts, and prefer to avoid a fatal shock if he could, he having a young wife and a sweet kid one year old.
How charming! I just loved it!!!
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When we shifted to Hyderabad from Bengal, my son was like a fish out of water, not knowing how to read or write his mother tongue and unversed in the Hyderabadi superstitions. He was tall and fair and easily mistaken for a Punjabi lad.
So I taught him the Raahu Kaalam Rule that very few here knew by heart but my father in his wisdom had taught me at an early age (I never follow it or its hundred cousins).
Then on, whenever he was teased about his outlandish ignorance, my son would challenge his colleagues to spell out the Raahu Kaalam for the day. They had to look at a Telugu Wall Calender which was not there in their ultra-modern Software Firm; and they would have to phone up their mothers asking them to look up the Calender hanging on the wall of their Puja Rooms (mothers too don't know the Golden Rule).
So they had to admit ignorance, and my son would announce the Raahu Kaalam for the day with a flourish; and ask them to check it up by phone calls to their mothers.
And they were silenced once for all.
Knowledge they say is Power!
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Here is the Secret Formula...strictly Between You & Me and Little Ishani:
"Soma-Shani-Shukra-Budha-Guru-Mangal-Aadi".
My son being a student of Chemistry which is replete with superstitious mumbo-jumbo formulas learned his gran'pa's formula by rote within two minutes and never looked back.
The Raahu Kaalm on any day lasts for an hour-and-half starting from 7.30 AM on Monday and ending at 6 PM on Sunday, following the Schedule:
Monday (Soma): 7.30 - 9.00 AM
Saturday (Shani): 9.00 - 10.30 AM
Friday (Shukra): 10.30 - 12 N00n
Wednesday (Budha): 12 - 1.30 PM
Thursday (Guru): 1.30 - 3.00 PM
Tuesday (Mangal): 3.00 - 4.30 PM
Sunday (Aadi): 4.30 - 6.00 PM
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"Come to H'bad on Business
Abide R'Kaalam in Business
Clinch shady Deals of Business
Keep our Rule a Secret Business
Damn your Rivals in Business!"
Best of Luck!
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