Strange and Wonderful

India can be so strange to our western eyes.  Such a crazy mix – beautiful and odd.

There is a struggle between the old and new.  Arranged marriages are the norm, with strictly prescribed steps, all controlled by the parents or in their absence, uncles and other relatives.  We may look askance at this practice, yet when we questioned a local person about it, he asked: “So how did your ‘free’ marriage work out?”  Divorce in India is almost unheard of.  Then there is the Ayurvedic doctor who divorced her alcoholic husband.

One man sits with me at my favourite morning spot by the water, and regales me with his life story, his philosophy, his own late marriage process and more.  He bewails the advent of Internet and cell phone, saying “Our children are destroyed by these technologies, they show no respect for parents and elders anymore.”  He also decried the pursuit of wealth: “Money makes the devil dance.” 

Here in Kochi, we have seen more than anywhere else in India a real blend of religious life: Hindu, Moslem, Jain, Jewish, Zoroastrian, and others, all seeming to coexist in harmony.  And the lines between religions are blurred.  The Hindu temples each have a chosen deity to whom people come to offer prayers and thanks (puja).  Then there are Christian shrines with their saints – Mother Theresa, Jesus, Mary Magdalene, St. Francis Xavier.  Christianity takes on a decidedly Malayalam flavour here, with similar music to the Hindu temples.  And the muezzin’s call to prayer at the mosque is also similar, sweet and mournful, not harsh and insistent as we have experienced in other places.  If I could sum it up I would say that spiritual life is sweet, ever-present and inviting in whatever form you choose.  And while some say Hinduism is polytheistic, with all the deities and idols, Hindus say no they are completely monotheistic – there is only one God, and that God is for everyone and in everyone.  The deities are simply aspects of God that can be described and used as a tool for prayer and thanksgiving.

Billboard - old and new

Most of the women and men wear traditional clothing: saris for the women and dhotis for the men.  Yet some prefer jeans and Nike shirts.  You never see short skirts or much skin on Indian women, while many western tourists are dressed for the beach, to the chagrin of some locals.  Many locals are barefoot, most wear chappals (sandals).

Boy with his pet pigeon and egg

While India is certainly not a clean environment, with mounds of garbage everywhere and open sewage streams running through the towns, people take great care of their bodies.  Morning ablutions are performed faithfully and thoroughly, people look squeaky clean, with hair shining.  Children in school uniforms are scrubbed and glowing.  This morning I saw a group of girls strolling together to school, stopping to pick some beautiful strands of yellow flowers from some low-hanging branches.

Huge tree in the field

There is a peaceful joy emanating everywhere – so different from my memories of grey and miserable faces on the subway and streets of Toronto.  They have so little, yet they appear to be rich and happy in life.  Life is good – even with hardship and suffering – God provides.