Thanking the Gods

'Papa, Can I go back to our room?' my little girl, Simi, whispered softly, leaning over my shoulder.

'Shhhh...be quiet. There are people around meditating’, I whispered back.

'Okay. I will go then. You want to come?' She said as she stood up.

I didn't respond.

She made her way back to the door through the small hall filled with people meditating. The hall was about 30 ft to 20 ft. In one corner, there was a couch with Maharishi's photo placed on it. Though Maharishi is no more in body, he is ever-present in the subtle form ever ready to help. Maharishi used to sit on the same couch and preach through silence. Though this was more than 65 years ago, people still come and sit in the same hall, meditate and leave with a clear mind. Maharishi guides them and one can experience inner peace, silence in heart and clarity in thoughts.

'Are you coming or not?' screamed Simi standing at the door momentarily breaking the silence in the hall.

'Shh...' I nodded and quickly got up, visibly embarrassed apologizing to the onlookers as I hurried towards the door.

'That's bad of you, Simi. Your behavior reflects poorly on us. I didn't expect this from you,' I said shoving my feet into my shoes.

'But that worked wonders, papa.' She said with a smile.

'Papa, I am tired. We are on this road trip for a month now. What more do you want from this little girl?' Simi said with a sad face. She was good at playing the emotional card just like her grandma.

Simi was our only child and we had her after many years of marriage. Though doctors were positive about us having a child, they had hinted at complications. We firmly believed that doctor is just a tool in the hands of God, so we approached the Gods. Over the years, we visited Ma Vaishno Devi in Jammu, The Golden Temple in Amritsar, Saibaba in Shirdi, Temples in Karnataka and Goa, Saint Alphonsa shrine, Divine mother in Velankanni, Chamundeshwari temple in Mysore and Maharshi's ashram in Tiruvannamalai  with this purpose. Some was of our own choosing whereas we visited other places due to recommendations from friends and relatives.

This visit with Simi was more of a "Thank You" visit to thank the deities; something I knew she wouldn’t understand at this tender age; the purpose, the motivation - all of it if I may say.

I kept struggling with my shoe lace as these thoughts kept coming back to me.

'You seem to have forgotten how to tie your shoe lace,' Simi said seeing my struggle with the lace. She bent down to tie my lace and it was done.

We strolled through the ashram campus in silence and after a while we sat under a peepal tree, facing the holy Arunachala.

'Hey. Look at those peacocks. Beautiful, isn't it?' Simi said pointing to a small group of 4-5 peacocks moving around quietly. I nodded. 

‘Who do you think we should really thank?' Simi asked looking at the divine mountain.

‘Thank? Thank for what?' I replied back without much thought.

'I mean - Which deity we should thank for sending me in your lives ? Should it be Vaishno Devi or Maharshi or Ma Chamundi?' She clarified looking into my eyes.

'Why...why is it so important?' I stumbled. I had never thought about this earlier.

'Papa, it's important. If we knew, a month's trip wouldn't have been necessary. We would have just visited one shrine, thanked and gone home. We might have as well spent the remaining days on a beach in Goa.’ She concluded with a smile.

I was speechless, shocked and stunned at her words. She may have scored a point intellectually but it’s difficult to explain a kid of seven that something is amiss.

'Aaah...umm....Actually, it's collective grace.' I said clearing my throat.

‘Why collective grace for such a small task?'  Pat came the reply. ‘It should have happened at the snap of a finger.' She argued.

Simi had a point. After all, nothing is impossible for the Gods!

'How else would my child get courage, knowledge and wealth of Ma Vaishnodevi and Ma Chamundi, Devotion of Saint Alphonsa and Sikh Gurus, Meditative nature of Shiva, troubleshooting skills of Vishnu, motherly love of Mother Mary and stillness of Maharshi.' I said with a smile looking at Simi. She was listening attentively.

'So...so - What you are saying is that I have them all?' Her face lit with excitement.

‘I mean...I mean...' I repeated a couple of time, deliberately delaying, sensing her growing impatience.

‘All? I was wondering if you have any.’ I snubbed her. Her face fell instantaneously as I laughed much to her disappointment.

'Paaaapaaaaa,' she said angrily though it sounded a little musical.  'You are a bad man. I am not talking to you anymore.' She continued as she got up and walked away.

A moment later, I could see her running around, chasing the peacocks. Disappointment on her face had faded away and she was her usual mischievous self.

‘Time and Circumstances would bring out some of these qualities in her for sure,' I thought.

I could hear the peacock screams as I closed my eyes, stilled my mind and sat oblivious to the surrounding; at least tried to.