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Praying and Preying
The festival of Maha Shivaratri is extremely popular with Mauritians in general and Hindus in particular. It is signifi cant that the sacred lake ‘ Ganga Talao’ or what is more commonly referred to as ‘ Grand Bassin’ was discovered by a Hindu who, in 1897, went on a solitary pilgrimage on the lookout for a lake which had appeared in his dreams as having a transcendental link with Lord Shiva. The name of that Hindu was Jhummun Gosain Napaul, in whose memory a statue has been dedicated at Grand Bassin.
Since Mauritius is blessed in having in the person of Minister Baichoo an official pandit who firmly believes that politics cannot be dissociated from religion, it is something to wonder at why no mention is ever made in official speeches about the pilgrimage of Mr Napaul. It is after the latter had made a fi rst visit to the sacred lake that two years later he took with him others from Triolet.
That pilgrimage gave birth to the annual celebration at Grand Bassin. The festival of Lord Shiva is symbolized by the pouring of water over the Shivling in order to assuage his pain and suffering.
But, I have it on good religious authority that a Shivling has an inherent force of attraction which does not tolerate the presence of another Shivling within a radius of at least a couple of kilometers. This is what religion says, but Pandit Baichoo has allowed, in the name of politics, the presence of several Shivlings without observing the religious distance. But then, I forget that religion is no different from politics, which is the art of the possible and of making possible what normally should not be possible.
I am also dabbling into this kind of discourse after listening to politicians pontificating about religion at the Ganga Talao. If these people can pretend to speak knowingly about religion and religious philosophy, then either something is wrong with them or with those who sit and listen – or pretend to listen just like some other politician made believe that he was dead. Since they have to sit for the MBC TV camera to pan them out so that they can tell everyone how fervent is their religious zeal. Pilgrims go to Grand Bassin to pray basically, and it is no wonder that in this ‘ plaisir’ country, politicians speak religion and the pundits are out of a job. Except Pandit Baichoo who is a pandit and not a pundit.
The sacred character of Grand Bassin has been defi led by the politics that is so rampant during a time when prayers should be uppermost in the minds of pilgrims. Can one imagine the Prime Minister of Italy addressing the crowd from the Vatican? Then we hear that some Indians have come all the way from India on a different kind of pilgrimage. They did make their way to Grand Bassin but what a few of them had in mind was not to pray, but to prey on the gold jewellery of the ladies lost in their prayers. Little did they know what they were going to lose.
But why should they wear jewellery to pray? They could have kept their jewellery at home, particularly since Polocco is behind bars.
 
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