The Untold

It was 10pm, an hour before my bus ride. My mother exclaimed, “No you have to follow us to do some sight-seeing tomorrow and you can’t just walk off at night!” She questioned me, “So what is your real purpose is in coming to India?”

Up until that moment, I did not know what I was going to say. The harsh light that fell on our faces illuminated her angry expressions and cast a shadow across her face. The shadows, were a much needed sign. I needed to move out of the shadows and step towards things I loved. Looking back, I realised that the individuality and simplicity of India was what I was yearning for.

India, as many people would describe is not for the weak. In one second you could be thrown about like a sack of potatoes in the back of a bus whilst the driver races against time and in another you could be overwhelmed by moments of wonder with its people’s spirituality and culture.

There I was in Harishchandragard, an ancient fort with various caves that speak of grandness and depicted the medieval era in India. Tastefully carved Hindu deities on caves were majestically on display to draw loose inspiration from mythological stories dating back to the 6th century. Stillness and abiding peace rests in the Kedareshwar cave. Four pillars were erected to reflect the ‘Yugas’ (cycle) of life. With three pillars down, and the last one standing it is known that when the fourth pillar breaks, the world will cease to be.

Dispelling the gloom, I looked beneath the veil of intricacies that these marvels represent. I shifted my gazed towards the looming mountains, and felt like a tiny speck of dust in the universe. I had been to India several times, but I often felt emotionally detached.

I wondered hard and minutes later at the broken hut in the corner next to the temple. I saw a boy carry twice his weight in wood and journey from the forest and back to his hut. He had to trek miles away from home to collect firewood to cook three meals a day for his family and resting campers. I realised at that moment that as young and small as he was, he wasn’t just a tiny speck of dust in his family’s universe, but he was everything to them, he was their cosmos. Shining a light on his family by plain acts of good.

On my journey back home, all that I had seen and experienced in India came flooding back to me. I was bemused, thinking to myself that I really did not have the slightest clue of India – it showed me how insignificant and powerful one can be all at once.