Compliments of the season! Season's greetings! Happy holidays! What happened to Merry Christmas? A while back, this was the regular greeting during December. One thought of December and it was always Christmas holidays! What is this season one wants to compliment and greet about?
The birth of Christ was not celebrated by the early church as we do now, but the early Christians knew its importance to mankind. They knew that were it not for the Sinless One being born as the Son of Man, there would never be hope for mankind. During the time when the Julian Calendar was adopted, the pagan winter festival of Yuletide celebrated in the last week of December as the Wild Hunt, was incorporated into the Christian Calendar as Christmas and celebrated on December 25, around 400 AD.
The joy that a person receives when they realize that our sins can be forgiven and we can receive the gift of eternal life, can never quite be captured....that is when Jesus Christ is born in the heart of that person, and life is never the same. To celebrate the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ is a season of joy for all mankind, now our salvation can be received by grace through faith and there is a way out of eternal darkness. Jesus Christ was born into the world to die for the sins of mankind and to give in exchange eternal life which only He can give....for God so loved the world, that He gave His Only Begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life
The true stories of three individuals who died and came back to tell of their experience is captured in the link below and you will find it a revelation of God's mercy and love. http://www.bibleprobe.com/hell2.htm
May you have a Merry Christmas & a Blessed New Year!
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
Honestly!
Honestly..one doesn't know whether to laugh or cry! It is not a laughing matter.....and yet it is comical....corruption that is coming out of every nook and cranny of the Indian polity! I like Jaspal Bhatti's opinion. Comedian-actor and Nonsense Club founder Jaspal Bhatti wants a new right for the people of India - the 'Right to Scam'. Bhatti and his team enacted a play in Chandigarh's Sector 17, appealing to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to allow the 'Right to Scam' for everyone. "Right to scam shouldn't be just the prerogative of powerful ministers but should be for everybody........the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan should be abandoned and a new scheme should be launched- 'Sarva Ghotala Abhiyaan'. Every young and old should be taught to understand what a scam is and how to become a part of a scam," is Bhatti's appeal!
The latest scam is the Radia Tapes and the power brokers, even among Indian journalists, who for some reason have allowed power to corrupt them - so busy looking for the beam in others but failing to see the log in their own eyes, and justifying their actions, to boot!
Up till now the hugest one is the 2G Spectrum scam - where the union minister of telecom A. Raja sold 2G licences at throwaway prices costing the nation Rs.1.76 lakh crores - how phenomenal is that? The CWG scam is another loot, think of it - the 2006 Melbourne CWG cost Rs.5000 crore and the 2008 Beijing Olympic budget was Rs.28000 crores. But the Rs.70,000 crores spent on the CWG New Delhi has only half the amount spent on the sportspersons and the rest is yet to be accounted for!
The sadder story is the Adarsh scam where in 2003 the 31 storey Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society building came up in Colaba. Each flat which actually cost Rs.6-8.5 crore was sold at Rs.60-85 lakhs to politicians and to Army and Navy chiefs and generals. All this on land which was meant to be for the Kargil war widows.
Who can forget the Satyam scam - the biggest fraud in the corporate history to the tune of Rs. 14000 crore. Ramalingam Raju, the success story of AP, fudged account books for years inflating revenues and profit figures. When the story broke, it also shattered the integrity of Indian business in India and abroad.
The Telgi scam was incredible - Abdul Karim Telgi sold fruit and vegetables in trains to pay for his school education. But he mastered the art of forging stamp papers. In 2007 when he was sentenced, it was estimated that his forgery was up to the tune of Rs.43000 crores.
There are literally a-scam-a-year frauds to choose from - the Bofors scandal, the Fodder scam, the IPL scam, the Hawala scam, the Harshad Mehta stockmarket scandal, the Ketan Parekh fraud, the Match-fixing Cricket scams, the Cobblers scam, the Bhansali scam, the UTI scam, the Global Trust Bank scandal....the list goes on and on!
India has one of the world's leading economists as its Prime Minister and Asia's best Finance Minister. Inspite of such luminaries, the corruption juggernaut is rolling on. We can laugh about it, I suppose, but in the end one corrupt system will replace another corrupt system. The greed and evil is increasing as the days go by and so is the hardening of the conscience of our leaders in politics, in the government and in the business community - the armed forces and the journalists are not spared either.
The Bible puts the matter of corruption so simply that even a child can understand it. In the book of Proverbs it says that we should avoid the "ways of everyone that is greedy of gain" and "the way of the evil man, who speaks froward (stubbornly disobedient and contrary) things; who leaves the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness; who rejoice to do evil, and delights in the frowardness of the wicked: whose ways are crooked...." In Proverbs 10:9 it says "He that walketh uprightly walketh surely: but he that perverteth his ways shall be known." Proverbs 17:23 says "A wicked man taketh a gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment."
Conscience is becoming so dull, the knowledge of good and evil is becoming hazy according to the world standards. Everyone has their own opinion of what is right and wrong and there is no common standard. For us, who believe in the God of the Bible, we believe that a day is coming when everyone will be called to account, and so will nations and ethnic groups and communities, no one is exempt from that time. A day of judgment is coming for those who refuse to believe that Jesus Christ came in the flesh and was judged on our behalf taking the punishment due to us. It will surely be a harsh judgement. If God could judge His Son Jesus Christ so harshly, why should He not judge those who refuse the free gift of eternal life and forgiveness of sins? It is better to live daily in the fear of the Lord because that is true wisdom. It is my prayer for India that corruption will be rooted out and the true peace that comes from accepting Jesus Christ as Saviour will come to our nation.
The latest scam is the Radia Tapes and the power brokers, even among Indian journalists, who for some reason have allowed power to corrupt them - so busy looking for the beam in others but failing to see the log in their own eyes, and justifying their actions, to boot!
Up till now the hugest one is the 2G Spectrum scam - where the union minister of telecom A. Raja sold 2G licences at throwaway prices costing the nation Rs.1.76 lakh crores - how phenomenal is that? The CWG scam is another loot, think of it - the 2006 Melbourne CWG cost Rs.5000 crore and the 2008 Beijing Olympic budget was Rs.28000 crores. But the Rs.70,000 crores spent on the CWG New Delhi has only half the amount spent on the sportspersons and the rest is yet to be accounted for!
The sadder story is the Adarsh scam where in 2003 the 31 storey Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society building came up in Colaba. Each flat which actually cost Rs.6-8.5 crore was sold at Rs.60-85 lakhs to politicians and to Army and Navy chiefs and generals. All this on land which was meant to be for the Kargil war widows.
Who can forget the Satyam scam - the biggest fraud in the corporate history to the tune of Rs. 14000 crore. Ramalingam Raju, the success story of AP, fudged account books for years inflating revenues and profit figures. When the story broke, it also shattered the integrity of Indian business in India and abroad.
The Telgi scam was incredible - Abdul Karim Telgi sold fruit and vegetables in trains to pay for his school education. But he mastered the art of forging stamp papers. In 2007 when he was sentenced, it was estimated that his forgery was up to the tune of Rs.43000 crores.
There are literally a-scam-a-year frauds to choose from - the Bofors scandal, the Fodder scam, the IPL scam, the Hawala scam, the Harshad Mehta stockmarket scandal, the Ketan Parekh fraud, the Match-fixing Cricket scams, the Cobblers scam, the Bhansali scam, the UTI scam, the Global Trust Bank scandal....the list goes on and on!
India has one of the world's leading economists as its Prime Minister and Asia's best Finance Minister. Inspite of such luminaries, the corruption juggernaut is rolling on. We can laugh about it, I suppose, but in the end one corrupt system will replace another corrupt system. The greed and evil is increasing as the days go by and so is the hardening of the conscience of our leaders in politics, in the government and in the business community - the armed forces and the journalists are not spared either.
The Bible puts the matter of corruption so simply that even a child can understand it. In the book of Proverbs it says that we should avoid the "ways of everyone that is greedy of gain" and "the way of the evil man, who speaks froward (stubbornly disobedient and contrary) things; who leaves the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness; who rejoice to do evil, and delights in the frowardness of the wicked: whose ways are crooked...." In Proverbs 10:9 it says "He that walketh uprightly walketh surely: but he that perverteth his ways shall be known." Proverbs 17:23 says "A wicked man taketh a gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment."
Conscience is becoming so dull, the knowledge of good and evil is becoming hazy according to the world standards. Everyone has their own opinion of what is right and wrong and there is no common standard. For us, who believe in the God of the Bible, we believe that a day is coming when everyone will be called to account, and so will nations and ethnic groups and communities, no one is exempt from that time. A day of judgment is coming for those who refuse to believe that Jesus Christ came in the flesh and was judged on our behalf taking the punishment due to us. It will surely be a harsh judgement. If God could judge His Son Jesus Christ so harshly, why should He not judge those who refuse the free gift of eternal life and forgiveness of sins? It is better to live daily in the fear of the Lord because that is true wisdom. It is my prayer for India that corruption will be rooted out and the true peace that comes from accepting Jesus Christ as Saviour will come to our nation.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
The Game's Over!
I had gone to Delhi to attend a family wedding and just before leaving Secunderabad had some moments of anxiety as to what would it be like there, during the Commonwealth Games. The media had exposed scandals and the reports just didn't seem to indicate that Delhi should be the place to be in during the first week of October. The situation seemed confusing ....should I go....should I not! I rang up a Delhi based cousin to find out whether it was okay and he said that the media had hyped up too much and of course I should come. Well, I just took a step of faith and went up north with some misgivings.
On arriving at Delhi on the fourth of October, I was so surprised......the railway station looked unbelievably clean.....and there was a very colourful train parked on the track nearby which was supposed to be for the CWG participants. Wow, is this the New Delhi Railway Station....a place where you have to be careful not to step over people, baggage and coolies? Even the coolies looked spruced up and other passengers too had a bemused look on their faces as much as mine had!
After I got into the parking lot, sat in my brother in law's car, I looked around, there were no stray cows and dogs, no beggars, no one was aiming 'paan' juice from their mouth and onto the road, there was no litter lying around, there was an unnatural cleanliness about the place and I wondered! On passing Connaught Place, I was overjoyed to see it looking white washed and really classy!
Off we went to south Delhi near Maharani Bagh where we were staying. What a difference on the roads...the traffic was so orderly and there was a yellow line marked lane which was empty. Even when the traffic became heavy, every car went behind the other instead of trying to overtake or rush diagonally, nosing other vehicles to the side....it was amazing...nothing like ever seen in Delhi! The empty lane was for the CWG participants and officials and no one dared cross the yellow line or they were fined Rs.2000 on the spot, there was so much of security to oversee that. We passed a stadium where an event was taking place and would you believe it, people had lined up neatly to get inside instead of the usual gaggle of crowds rushing in and elbowing others out! I found it hard to believe that we Indians can actually be so organized - it was a heady moment for me! Having heard of the security lapse in September when there was a firing incident in the Jama Masjid area by unknown terroriests, it was great that all the CWG events happened smoothly and without any more lapses...the government authorities took no chances and the public readily cooperated on that score.
The CWG had been at the back of our minds as a big event that was going to happen in Delhi, as we went about our daily business in different cities across India. But then a few television and newspaper reports began to appear about the inability of India to make the grade because of corruption. One minister had said that Delhi was not going to get ready on time besides, the amount of money being spent was criminal considering that we are a nation with frightening levels of poverty and the CWG budget could be better spent. Closer to the CWG event, one realized the magnitude of it and also the scale of the budget....the initial budget estimation by the Indian Olympic Association in 2003 had been Rs.16.3 billion. In early 2010 the estimate was Rs.115 billion. Finally when they calculated it, the budget was Rs.300 billion. There appears to have been large scale corruption and financial irregularities. The government of India has ordered a probe committee into the corruption which is led by former Comptroller and Auditor General of India VK Shungloo. This probe will be in addition to the Central Bureau of Investigation, Enforcement Directorate, and Central Vigilance Commission investigations already underway. The Prime Minister of India, Dr Manmohan Singh had promised in mid-August, when reports of the bungling first surfaced, that corrupt officials will be given "severe and exemplary" punishment after the Games. The probe committee is looking into "all aspects of organizing and conducting" the Games, and "to draw lessons from it." It has been given three months time to submit its report.
Although we are a cricket loving nation, the CWG has shown that India can win in other sports as well. No matter that the Indian contingent was the largest at 619, the medal tally was quite a haul for us, 101 in all with 38 gold, 27 silver and 36 bronze.
What needs to change is our mindset as Indians. We wait for the last minute to complete tasks and like to work under duress, rather than being prepared. We are cynical about corruption in high places and take it for granted that it will happen and when found out, justice will not be done. We have the celebrity hang up and prefer solo sports performers rather than teams! We believe in covering up to hide facts and the more smartly we do that, the more we pat ourselves on the back for it! I wonder if the clean-up and orderliness in Delhi is going to last...I wish that it will. Perhaps the beggars have returned from where they were put away, by now. Our sense of community and extending the helping hand surfaces only when there is a crisis looming...I wish that we could have a community mindset all the time!
The Game is over, not just for India but for many who thought that they could get away with it! I do believe that the CWG has helped in changing our outlook to some extent and hope that we can host an Olympics soon, in Hyderabad/Secunderabad perhaps!
On arriving at Delhi on the fourth of October, I was so surprised......the railway station looked unbelievably clean.....and there was a very colourful train parked on the track nearby which was supposed to be for the CWG participants. Wow, is this the New Delhi Railway Station....a place where you have to be careful not to step over people, baggage and coolies? Even the coolies looked spruced up and other passengers too had a bemused look on their faces as much as mine had!
After I got into the parking lot, sat in my brother in law's car, I looked around, there were no stray cows and dogs, no beggars, no one was aiming 'paan' juice from their mouth and onto the road, there was no litter lying around, there was an unnatural cleanliness about the place and I wondered! On passing Connaught Place, I was overjoyed to see it looking white washed and really classy!
Off we went to south Delhi near Maharani Bagh where we were staying. What a difference on the roads...the traffic was so orderly and there was a yellow line marked lane which was empty. Even when the traffic became heavy, every car went behind the other instead of trying to overtake or rush diagonally, nosing other vehicles to the side....it was amazing...nothing like ever seen in Delhi! The empty lane was for the CWG participants and officials and no one dared cross the yellow line or they were fined Rs.2000 on the spot, there was so much of security to oversee that. We passed a stadium where an event was taking place and would you believe it, people had lined up neatly to get inside instead of the usual gaggle of crowds rushing in and elbowing others out! I found it hard to believe that we Indians can actually be so organized - it was a heady moment for me! Having heard of the security lapse in September when there was a firing incident in the Jama Masjid area by unknown terroriests, it was great that all the CWG events happened smoothly and without any more lapses...the government authorities took no chances and the public readily cooperated on that score.
The CWG had been at the back of our minds as a big event that was going to happen in Delhi, as we went about our daily business in different cities across India. But then a few television and newspaper reports began to appear about the inability of India to make the grade because of corruption. One minister had said that Delhi was not going to get ready on time besides, the amount of money being spent was criminal considering that we are a nation with frightening levels of poverty and the CWG budget could be better spent. Closer to the CWG event, one realized the magnitude of it and also the scale of the budget....the initial budget estimation by the Indian Olympic Association in 2003 had been Rs.16.3 billion. In early 2010 the estimate was Rs.115 billion. Finally when they calculated it, the budget was Rs.300 billion. There appears to have been large scale corruption and financial irregularities. The government of India has ordered a probe committee into the corruption which is led by former Comptroller and Auditor General of India VK Shungloo. This probe will be in addition to the Central Bureau of Investigation, Enforcement Directorate, and Central Vigilance Commission investigations already underway. The Prime Minister of India, Dr Manmohan Singh had promised in mid-August, when reports of the bungling first surfaced, that corrupt officials will be given "severe and exemplary" punishment after the Games. The probe committee is looking into "all aspects of organizing and conducting" the Games, and "to draw lessons from it." It has been given three months time to submit its report.
Although we are a cricket loving nation, the CWG has shown that India can win in other sports as well. No matter that the Indian contingent was the largest at 619, the medal tally was quite a haul for us, 101 in all with 38 gold, 27 silver and 36 bronze.
What needs to change is our mindset as Indians. We wait for the last minute to complete tasks and like to work under duress, rather than being prepared. We are cynical about corruption in high places and take it for granted that it will happen and when found out, justice will not be done. We have the celebrity hang up and prefer solo sports performers rather than teams! We believe in covering up to hide facts and the more smartly we do that, the more we pat ourselves on the back for it! I wonder if the clean-up and orderliness in Delhi is going to last...I wish that it will. Perhaps the beggars have returned from where they were put away, by now. Our sense of community and extending the helping hand surfaces only when there is a crisis looming...I wish that we could have a community mindset all the time!
The Game is over, not just for India but for many who thought that they could get away with it! I do believe that the CWG has helped in changing our outlook to some extent and hope that we can host an Olympics soon, in Hyderabad/Secunderabad perhaps!
Saturday, September 4, 2010
A Precious Legacy
I've been thinking a lot about my ancestors and more so, since I joined the Geni Family Tree and discovered that I have a family of 508 members with 317 blood relatives! I have already blogged about my maternal great grandmother and this time I am blogging about my paternal grandfather - Dr. Andrew Prabhu Das. His legacy to our family has been priceless and still endures in my generation. He was well loved and we as a family honour him even today when we remember him. He was born on November 25, 1877 as Hargobind Das Joshi. His father was a doctor in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India - Dr. Bisheshwar Das Joshi belonging to a high-caste Hindu family. One of Dr. Bisheshwar Das Joshi's daughters was married to the Raja of Banaras.
As a young lad, Hargobind was studying to be a doctor like his father, when he came across a tract distributed by the Zenana Mission's Bible women. In this, young Hargobind Das read about Jesus Christ the Son of God who loves the whole world. In the caste-ridden society that he lived in, this was a new concept. Moreover, Hargobind read the gospels in the Holy Bible telling him that Jesus Christ loved lepers too, and He touched and healed them. This was radical and Hargobind hungered for more of this faith where there was no caste and there was compassion and mercy. He read and was convinced that Jesus Christ was the Truth. As soon as he turned eighteen, Hargobind was baptised in November 1895 in Benares and received the name of Andrew Prabhu Das, having got rid of his caste! As is the case, his family ostracized him and he was disowned by them. He had a desire to pursue his medical studies. His mother on parting from him, gave him all her jewellery to sell and fund his studies. Andrew Prabhu Das went on to the Agra Medical School in Uttar Pradesh to complete his education and was a qualified doctor in May 1902 when he received his degree.
Whilst studying in Agra, he met with his friend's sister Sally Atmaram, studying at the Victoria High School. Sarah Atmaram born on September 12, 1881 was the daughter of James Atmaram of Hoshangabad, a government clerk and who gave his children the best education of his time. Sarah Atmaram passed with a first division in 1901 being a diligent and responsible student. Andrew and Sarah were married on December 28, 1904 by Rev. Charles W. Darling, at the St. George's Church in Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh then known as the Central Provinces.
Dr. and Mrs. Andrew Prabhu Das arrived in Tarn Taran, Punjab, to work at the Mission to Lepers in 1909, where Canon E. Guilford of the Church Missionary Society was being supported by the Mission to Lepers to work among these afflicted. In his own words written in John Jackson's "In Leper Land" Canon Guilford says, "Never shall I forget my first visit to these awful wrecks of humanity. When we got within the Asylum there came surging around us such a crowd of deformed, mutilated, suffering creatures...". It was among such that my grandparents started their work and remained here in Tarn Taran till 1961 January when Dr. A.P. Das died whilst he was superintendent of the Home & Hospital for fifty two years. Mission to Lepers was founded by Wellesley Bailey in 1874 to aid leprosy sufferers, first in India and later throughout the colonies of the British Empire. The Church of England's Church Missionary Society was closely involved in this work and along with the Mission to Lepers, leprosy patients were reached out to, when society had given them up or had nothing to offer them. Wellesley C. Bailey had visited Tarn Taran just before Dr. A.P. Das came to Tarn Taran and there is a posting of this in the visitors' logbook maintained by The Leprosy Mission and it was over a hundred years' ago in a fragile condition kept by Dr. Premal Das now!
Whilst researching for Dr. A.P. Das, I googled and came across this passage from the 1969 Health Statistics of the Chief Medical Officer of the Punjab Government: "The present asylum, situated outside the town, was established in 1858. It was maintained with Municipal funds and with the cost received from the respective districts to which the lepers belonged. In 1903, the maintenance and the control of the asylum were passed out to the Mission of Lepers, London. It is now called Leprosy Hospital and Home, Tarn Taran. It has 230 beds. At present, there is one Leprosy Specialist and 4 Nurses, besides some other allied staff. The asylum remained under the charge of Rev, Canon Dr. A.P. Dass from 1909 to 1961. Near the asylum, a colony for recovered cases and their descendants has come into existence.
Martha David Home: Close to the asylum is a separate home for the untainted children of the patients; and is known as the Martha David Home. It has 60 seats. Here the children are kept separate from their parents. They are provided with necessary facilities for their education. The mission maintains both the Asylum and the home." I was amazed that in the 21st century, I could google and find information about my grandfather on the internet!
My maternal grandfather Canon A.B. Chandu Lall visited my paternal grandfather Canon Dr. A.P. Das in 1937 and made this posting in the visitors' logbook not knowing that in twelve years' time his daughter would marry Dr. A.P. Das's youngest son. This was really an amazing "God's incident" in the lives of our ancestors, because there are no coincidences with God!
Bishop Heber Wilkinson, the Bishop of Amritsar, in his book "Thirst of India" published in 1954 writes: "In Tarn Taran, Mrs. Das, the wife of the superintendent of the home, the Rev. Canon Dr. Das, has done remarkable work with such children. They live in a simple hostel and are grouped together in "families", ranging in age from sixteen years to two years. The older children have to care for the smaller children, and live and work together in their little family groups. They receive ordinary school education and do beautiful handiwork. They are especially well trained in singing and folk dancing, and it is a great treat to hear their tuneful voices in perfect harmony and to witness their graceful movements as they enjoy themselves when performing simple folk dances. On occasions they put on performances to entertain the lepers who sit at a distance from them. It is pathetic to see the expression on the faces of the parents who are separated physically from their children, but are able to see them from time to time and to take great pride in their progress. From this home many young men and women have gone out into the world to lives of Christian service. Some of them are nurses and teachers, and one young man became a Petty Officer in the Indian Navy. I know of no greater work of love and mercy than the care of these untainted leper children."
From my grandparents I learned to live for others and service to the deprived as Jesus Christ taught us has become our lifestyle. Dr. & Mrs. A.P. Das had nine children, the first two of whom died in infancy. Dorothea (b1909) the eldest surviving child married Dr. James Ayaram who also worked as the superintendent of The Leprosy Mission Home & Hospital in Tarn Taran, carrying on the tradition of his father-in-law. Ernest (b1911) was a professor of Zoology in the university of Sholapur in Maharashtra; Victor (b1913) the next son, nearly died in his infancy but my grandmother asked God to spare his life and dedicated him to the Lord, so he became a doctor and joined The Leprosy Mission and became its Secretary-General for South Asia ably assisted by his wife Beulah. His daughter Dr. Kiran Sarkar worked and retired from The Leprosy Mission and his son Anil was superintendent in Purulia, West Bengal, when he died some years ago. Christine (b1915) was the fourth child and she became the principal of the mission school in Kharar and then joined The Leprosy Mission as superintendent of the Hospital & Home in Tarn Taran, carrying on the family tradition, from where she retired. My grandmother died and was buried in 1974 at Tarn Taran whilst staying with my aunt Christine when she was the superintendent there. Harold (b1917), the next child also worked with The Leprosy Mission in Poladhpur, Maharashtra, along with his wife Venetia and their younger son Dr. Premal Das is currently the Deputy Director of The Leprosy Mission, India. He and his wife Dr. Loretta Das, are based in Naini, Allahabad in UP. Eric (b1919) the sixth child was in the British army which he left after India's independence and joined the Forest Department of the Punjab Government, neither he nor his family worked with The Leprosy Mission and I am his third daughter documenting this! Joy (b1921) is the only surviving child of Dr. & Mrs. A.P. Das, living with her niece in Delhi/Noida, and was a teacher first with the Mission to Lepers Home in Tarn Taran where she taught the untainted children of leprosy patients, and later in Chandigarh at the Carmel Convent School. She retired and moved on to Delhi where she is staying now.
Psalm 128 sums up my grandparents' life: Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways.
For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.
Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.
Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the LORD.
The LORD shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.
Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children, and peace upon Israel.
As a young lad, Hargobind was studying to be a doctor like his father, when he came across a tract distributed by the Zenana Mission's Bible women. In this, young Hargobind Das read about Jesus Christ the Son of God who loves the whole world. In the caste-ridden society that he lived in, this was a new concept. Moreover, Hargobind read the gospels in the Holy Bible telling him that Jesus Christ loved lepers too, and He touched and healed them. This was radical and Hargobind hungered for more of this faith where there was no caste and there was compassion and mercy. He read and was convinced that Jesus Christ was the Truth. As soon as he turned eighteen, Hargobind was baptised in November 1895 in Benares and received the name of Andrew Prabhu Das, having got rid of his caste! As is the case, his family ostracized him and he was disowned by them. He had a desire to pursue his medical studies. His mother on parting from him, gave him all her jewellery to sell and fund his studies. Andrew Prabhu Das went on to the Agra Medical School in Uttar Pradesh to complete his education and was a qualified doctor in May 1902 when he received his degree.
Whilst studying in Agra, he met with his friend's sister Sally Atmaram, studying at the Victoria High School. Sarah Atmaram born on September 12, 1881 was the daughter of James Atmaram of Hoshangabad, a government clerk and who gave his children the best education of his time. Sarah Atmaram passed with a first division in 1901 being a diligent and responsible student. Andrew and Sarah were married on December 28, 1904 by Rev. Charles W. Darling, at the St. George's Church in Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh then known as the Central Provinces.
Dr. and Mrs. Andrew Prabhu Das arrived in Tarn Taran, Punjab, to work at the Mission to Lepers in 1909, where Canon E. Guilford of the Church Missionary Society was being supported by the Mission to Lepers to work among these afflicted. In his own words written in John Jackson's "In Leper Land" Canon Guilford says, "Never shall I forget my first visit to these awful wrecks of humanity. When we got within the Asylum there came surging around us such a crowd of deformed, mutilated, suffering creatures...". It was among such that my grandparents started their work and remained here in Tarn Taran till 1961 January when Dr. A.P. Das died whilst he was superintendent of the Home & Hospital for fifty two years. Mission to Lepers was founded by Wellesley Bailey in 1874 to aid leprosy sufferers, first in India and later throughout the colonies of the British Empire. The Church of England's Church Missionary Society was closely involved in this work and along with the Mission to Lepers, leprosy patients were reached out to, when society had given them up or had nothing to offer them. Wellesley C. Bailey had visited Tarn Taran just before Dr. A.P. Das came to Tarn Taran and there is a posting of this in the visitors' logbook maintained by The Leprosy Mission and it was over a hundred years' ago in a fragile condition kept by Dr. Premal Das now!
Whilst researching for Dr. A.P. Das, I googled and came across this passage from the 1969 Health Statistics of the Chief Medical Officer of the Punjab Government: "The present asylum, situated outside the town, was established in 1858. It was maintained with Municipal funds and with the cost received from the respective districts to which the lepers belonged. In 1903, the maintenance and the control of the asylum were passed out to the Mission of Lepers, London. It is now called Leprosy Hospital and Home, Tarn Taran. It has 230 beds. At present, there is one Leprosy Specialist and 4 Nurses, besides some other allied staff. The asylum remained under the charge of Rev, Canon Dr. A.P. Dass from 1909 to 1961. Near the asylum, a colony for recovered cases and their descendants has come into existence.
Martha David Home: Close to the asylum is a separate home for the untainted children of the patients; and is known as the Martha David Home. It has 60 seats. Here the children are kept separate from their parents. They are provided with necessary facilities for their education. The mission maintains both the Asylum and the home." I was amazed that in the 21st century, I could google and find information about my grandfather on the internet!
My maternal grandfather Canon A.B. Chandu Lall visited my paternal grandfather Canon Dr. A.P. Das in 1937 and made this posting in the visitors' logbook not knowing that in twelve years' time his daughter would marry Dr. A.P. Das's youngest son. This was really an amazing "God's incident" in the lives of our ancestors, because there are no coincidences with God!
Bishop Heber Wilkinson, the Bishop of Amritsar, in his book "Thirst of India" published in 1954 writes: "In Tarn Taran, Mrs. Das, the wife of the superintendent of the home, the Rev. Canon Dr. Das, has done remarkable work with such children. They live in a simple hostel and are grouped together in "families", ranging in age from sixteen years to two years. The older children have to care for the smaller children, and live and work together in their little family groups. They receive ordinary school education and do beautiful handiwork. They are especially well trained in singing and folk dancing, and it is a great treat to hear their tuneful voices in perfect harmony and to witness their graceful movements as they enjoy themselves when performing simple folk dances. On occasions they put on performances to entertain the lepers who sit at a distance from them. It is pathetic to see the expression on the faces of the parents who are separated physically from their children, but are able to see them from time to time and to take great pride in their progress. From this home many young men and women have gone out into the world to lives of Christian service. Some of them are nurses and teachers, and one young man became a Petty Officer in the Indian Navy. I know of no greater work of love and mercy than the care of these untainted leper children."
From my grandparents I learned to live for others and service to the deprived as Jesus Christ taught us has become our lifestyle. Dr. & Mrs. A.P. Das had nine children, the first two of whom died in infancy. Dorothea (b1909) the eldest surviving child married Dr. James Ayaram who also worked as the superintendent of The Leprosy Mission Home & Hospital in Tarn Taran, carrying on the tradition of his father-in-law. Ernest (b1911) was a professor of Zoology in the university of Sholapur in Maharashtra; Victor (b1913) the next son, nearly died in his infancy but my grandmother asked God to spare his life and dedicated him to the Lord, so he became a doctor and joined The Leprosy Mission and became its Secretary-General for South Asia ably assisted by his wife Beulah. His daughter Dr. Kiran Sarkar worked and retired from The Leprosy Mission and his son Anil was superintendent in Purulia, West Bengal, when he died some years ago. Christine (b1915) was the fourth child and she became the principal of the mission school in Kharar and then joined The Leprosy Mission as superintendent of the Hospital & Home in Tarn Taran, carrying on the family tradition, from where she retired. My grandmother died and was buried in 1974 at Tarn Taran whilst staying with my aunt Christine when she was the superintendent there. Harold (b1917), the next child also worked with The Leprosy Mission in Poladhpur, Maharashtra, along with his wife Venetia and their younger son Dr. Premal Das is currently the Deputy Director of The Leprosy Mission, India. He and his wife Dr. Loretta Das, are based in Naini, Allahabad in UP. Eric (b1919) the sixth child was in the British army which he left after India's independence and joined the Forest Department of the Punjab Government, neither he nor his family worked with The Leprosy Mission and I am his third daughter documenting this! Joy (b1921) is the only surviving child of Dr. & Mrs. A.P. Das, living with her niece in Delhi/Noida, and was a teacher first with the Mission to Lepers Home in Tarn Taran where she taught the untainted children of leprosy patients, and later in Chandigarh at the Carmel Convent School. She retired and moved on to Delhi where she is staying now.
Psalm 128 sums up my grandparents' life: Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways.
For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.
Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.
Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the LORD.
The LORD shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.
Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children, and peace upon Israel.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Go..Go....Goa!
Last week we returned from Goa after a great trip. It was my first to Goa and though the monsoons are not the best time to go there, it was a super trip and I suppose if we went during season, it would be an even more super trip! There is more to Goa than the sun, sand, beaches and fun, as we realized during this vacation.
As soon as we reached the Holiday Inn where we were put up by the Expat Group in Cavelossim, in the southern part of Goa, we checked in to our room and decided to go for a walk on the hotel's private beach. Happily armed with our cameras we set off. It was evening time and the sea was coming down from a high tide but still quite rough and the clouds looked threatening but far off. We walked the length of the southern side seeing the lifeguards running into the waves that came on shore, and the stray dogs and cows that hung around and a few fisher folk with their nets spread on the beach so that when the tide came in, some fish got caught into the nets. Otherwise the sea was too rough for the fishermen to be venturing into. As we neared the hotel, the threatening clouds that seemed far off, suddenly opened on to us in sheets and we ran for shelter to the Fisherman's Grill, the hotel restaurant at the beach. Just as quickly as the downpour started, in about ten minutes it was over as we waded our way back to the room! This was how the monsoon rains happened all through our one week stay.
A tour was arranged for us to see the beautiful Western Ghats in that area, really lush with dense foliage all across. The low hills seemed to burst with the 'season of mists and mellow fruitfulness'! The area is rich in iron-ore and manganese, and we saw some of the mines. We went to the 35 acre large spice plantation - Sahakari Spice Farm - and were taken on a tour of all the lovely spices which we use in our food, clove, cardammom, cinnamon, turmeric, pepper, cummin, fennel, vanilla and so many of these heady seasonings. The Goan cuisine is full of these spices which are grown in large plantations along with other cash crops of areca nuts (supaari), cashew nuts, coconuts, tropical fruit etc. The Goan toddy called 'fenni' is made from cashew nuts and they showed us the process (quite yucky!), and we were given a sample and told not to smell the stuff! Even a sip was quite potent for us!
The really nice part was Old Goa, where we saw some old Portugese style houses and architecture of the old churches was quite remarkable. The Basilica of Bom Jesus was the church in which the remains of St. Francis Xavier are still kept which are not allowed to be viewed by the public. The church interior is very ornate and the gold coated altar is like the European churches in style. The ruins of the St. Augustine Church were really impressive.
We got to see some well known beaches but mostly in the rain. The Vagator Beach is a popular beach and in the northern area of Goa with the Chapora Fort nearby. The Anjuna Beach is infamous for its rave parties and the hippie culture. Fort Aguada was worth the visit. We reached there when it shuts down for visitors and we were the last in. So very quickly, in the rain and the slush, we walked the ramparts and took photos of the old 19th century lighthouse and the new lighthouse. When the guard blew his whistle we were on the other end and came huffing and puffing to the exit, only to find that we were locked in! After shouting for a while, the guard came sheepishly from nearby and let us out! The Aguada Central Jail is close by. On the other side is the famous Calungate Beach and we saw an abandoned Russian ship off the beach which had somehow got stuck there - but made a pretty picture!
Panjim is the capital of Goa and has some beautiful houses particularly the La Marvel area - some of the rich and famous stay here. The city is a mix of new and old architectural styles, some have the more modern and parts are Portuguese style old houses. The amazing part of the Goan culture is that many have painted their homes a bright blue or pink or purple or green or yellow or orange - which should look quite dreadful but instead added to the colourful charm of the Goans! We had some good shopping on 18th June Street in Panjim and found a great Goan food restaurant in one of the alleys there - delicious!
Vasco da Gama or Mormugao is another old and big port, the place in the 15th century where Vasco da Gama landed and brought with him the Portuguese who colonized Goa, along with Daman & Diu further north in Gujarat. The largest shipyard is in Vizag but another big one is in Vasco and we saw the construction of a ship there, very interesting. Dona Paula is a picturesque landscaped garden overlooking the meeting point of the rivers Zuari and Mandovi, said to be the place where the viceroy's daughter jumped off the cliff because she couldn't marry a local fisherman.
Goan food is really original - a mix of Portuguese, Hindu and Moghul cuisines - a delight to the palate if you are a foodie! The Recheado is a Portuguese concoction of spices; the Cafreal is a mixture of spices brought to Goa by the African soldiers and sailors; the Vindaloo is the spice mix used by the Christian community for festivals; the Sorpotel is adapted from the Portuguese Sarabulho; the Chouricas are the famous smoked pork sausages of Goa....and much more! The desserts are mouthwatering and the Bebinca is coconut pancakes layered and baked in a clay oven. It is a treat to eat the freshly caught fish or prawn and lightly fried and served there and then - we so enjoyed it.
All good things come to an end and so did our holiday. It was a relaxed time. The Goans are a happy lot and quite chilled...if you want to release tensions from your life....go....go...go to Goa!
As soon as we reached the Holiday Inn where we were put up by the Expat Group in Cavelossim, in the southern part of Goa, we checked in to our room and decided to go for a walk on the hotel's private beach. Happily armed with our cameras we set off. It was evening time and the sea was coming down from a high tide but still quite rough and the clouds looked threatening but far off. We walked the length of the southern side seeing the lifeguards running into the waves that came on shore, and the stray dogs and cows that hung around and a few fisher folk with their nets spread on the beach so that when the tide came in, some fish got caught into the nets. Otherwise the sea was too rough for the fishermen to be venturing into. As we neared the hotel, the threatening clouds that seemed far off, suddenly opened on to us in sheets and we ran for shelter to the Fisherman's Grill, the hotel restaurant at the beach. Just as quickly as the downpour started, in about ten minutes it was over as we waded our way back to the room! This was how the monsoon rains happened all through our one week stay.
A tour was arranged for us to see the beautiful Western Ghats in that area, really lush with dense foliage all across. The low hills seemed to burst with the 'season of mists and mellow fruitfulness'! The area is rich in iron-ore and manganese, and we saw some of the mines. We went to the 35 acre large spice plantation - Sahakari Spice Farm - and were taken on a tour of all the lovely spices which we use in our food, clove, cardammom, cinnamon, turmeric, pepper, cummin, fennel, vanilla and so many of these heady seasonings. The Goan cuisine is full of these spices which are grown in large plantations along with other cash crops of areca nuts (supaari), cashew nuts, coconuts, tropical fruit etc. The Goan toddy called 'fenni' is made from cashew nuts and they showed us the process (quite yucky!), and we were given a sample and told not to smell the stuff! Even a sip was quite potent for us!
The really nice part was Old Goa, where we saw some old Portugese style houses and architecture of the old churches was quite remarkable. The Basilica of Bom Jesus was the church in which the remains of St. Francis Xavier are still kept which are not allowed to be viewed by the public. The church interior is very ornate and the gold coated altar is like the European churches in style. The ruins of the St. Augustine Church were really impressive.
We got to see some well known beaches but mostly in the rain. The Vagator Beach is a popular beach and in the northern area of Goa with the Chapora Fort nearby. The Anjuna Beach is infamous for its rave parties and the hippie culture. Fort Aguada was worth the visit. We reached there when it shuts down for visitors and we were the last in. So very quickly, in the rain and the slush, we walked the ramparts and took photos of the old 19th century lighthouse and the new lighthouse. When the guard blew his whistle we were on the other end and came huffing and puffing to the exit, only to find that we were locked in! After shouting for a while, the guard came sheepishly from nearby and let us out! The Aguada Central Jail is close by. On the other side is the famous Calungate Beach and we saw an abandoned Russian ship off the beach which had somehow got stuck there - but made a pretty picture!
Panjim is the capital of Goa and has some beautiful houses particularly the La Marvel area - some of the rich and famous stay here. The city is a mix of new and old architectural styles, some have the more modern and parts are Portuguese style old houses. The amazing part of the Goan culture is that many have painted their homes a bright blue or pink or purple or green or yellow or orange - which should look quite dreadful but instead added to the colourful charm of the Goans! We had some good shopping on 18th June Street in Panjim and found a great Goan food restaurant in one of the alleys there - delicious!
Vasco da Gama or Mormugao is another old and big port, the place in the 15th century where Vasco da Gama landed and brought with him the Portuguese who colonized Goa, along with Daman & Diu further north in Gujarat. The largest shipyard is in Vizag but another big one is in Vasco and we saw the construction of a ship there, very interesting. Dona Paula is a picturesque landscaped garden overlooking the meeting point of the rivers Zuari and Mandovi, said to be the place where the viceroy's daughter jumped off the cliff because she couldn't marry a local fisherman.
Goan food is really original - a mix of Portuguese, Hindu and Moghul cuisines - a delight to the palate if you are a foodie! The Recheado is a Portuguese concoction of spices; the Cafreal is a mixture of spices brought to Goa by the African soldiers and sailors; the Vindaloo is the spice mix used by the Christian community for festivals; the Sorpotel is adapted from the Portuguese Sarabulho; the Chouricas are the famous smoked pork sausages of Goa....and much more! The desserts are mouthwatering and the Bebinca is coconut pancakes layered and baked in a clay oven. It is a treat to eat the freshly caught fish or prawn and lightly fried and served there and then - we so enjoyed it.
All good things come to an end and so did our holiday. It was a relaxed time. The Goans are a happy lot and quite chilled...if you want to release tensions from your life....go....go...go to Goa!
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Going Back in Time
My mother's mother's mother - my maternal greatgrandmother - had quite a story to tell about her life even though she lived her life in meek insignificance! I watched the movie "Water" only because it spoke of a cultural situation from which my greatgrandmother or Badi Nani, as we called her, escaped in a timely way. Badi Nani was born perhaps in 1885 and grew up in Kendua, south Kolkota in Hooghli District. She was married at the tender age of twelve or thirteen to the village 'purohit' Hari Babu Mukherji, a person of bad habits, a drunkard and an 'afeemchi'. It was customary for young girls to marry at that age and Shoshi was no exception. Soon after her marriage, her husband died, leaving her with a baby daughter who never got to know her father. Badi Nani, being a widow, had very few options of survival in early 20th century Bengal. She could have committed 'sati', where she could have been burned along with her husband on his funeral pyre. It was still prevalent at that time inspite of the social reforms. The other option was to be taken to Kashi (modern Varanasi) to die. This is what her mother and family decided to do. Along with her infant daughter, Shoshi was taken by her mother to Kashi at the banks of the river Ganges, sacred to Hindus, where she was to meet the ritual requirements of being a widow.Widows from the Hindu background are faced with many rituals and the higher their caste, the more restrictions they face. Traditionally when a man dies, his widow is expected to renounce all earthly pleasures. Widows should no longer look attractive, and are expected to wear only simple white saris for the rest of their lives. A widow must cut her hair or even shave her head. She is forbidden from eating meat, fish and eggs, as well as anything touched by Muslim hands. And as mostly bakeries are run by Muslims, bread, biscuits or cakes are banned. Orthodox Hindus also believe that vegetables like onions, garlic and certain pulses heat the blood and are impure foods, so there is much they can't eat. Widows are expected to fast several times a month, sometimes eating nothing but fruit for days on end. Sadly, a widow is sometimes called 'pram' or creature, because it was only her husband's presence that gave her human status. In some Indian languages, a widow is referred to as "it" rather than "she"; in others, the word doubles as an abuse or is barely differentiated from the word for prostitute. Families would be ostracized if they didn't follow the restrictions society placed on widows. No washerman would wash their clothes, no shopkeeper would sell things to them, they wouldn't be able to participate in any rituals because a widow was considered inauspicious; she couldn't be present at the rituals and celebrations that form such an integral part of Indian life, such as marriage or birth ceremonies. Even her shadow was considered polluting or offensive.
When Shoshi reached Varanasi along with her daughter and mother, at the railway station, they were spotted by an aunt, her mother's cousin. This lady had become a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ and joined the Zenana Mission and came to the railway station to rescue many such sad lives. Shoshi was tactfully taken by this aunt along with her daughter to the Zenana Mission in the heart of Varanasi. Shoshi's mother informed the 'pandas', Brahmin pandits who are the keepers and defenders of the traditions of the Hindu faith and they were furious that a high-caste Bengali widow had been spirited away by the Zenana Mission. They surrounded the Zenana Mission and Shoshi's mother came to persuade her to return. It was an emotional time but Shoshi and her baby daughter stayed on at the Zenana Mission and her mother returned to Kendua leaving her daughter and granddaughter behind.
The Church of England Zenana Missionary Society was founded in 1880 when it separated from the interdenominational Indian Female Normal School Society, which had been founded in 1852. Its main aim was to evangelise the women of India by means of normal schools (teacher training colleges), zenana visiting, medical missions, Hindu and Muslim female schools and the employment of Bible women. The society worked in close co-operation with the Church Missionary Society with which it merged later.
It was at the Zenana Mission in Varanasi that Shoshi accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as her personal Saviour. She also studied enough to be a warden and a teacher. She went on to Khandua, near Indore, with an American Methodist School where she was the warden and earned enough to give her daughter the best education at the American Presbyterian Mary Wanamaker School in Allahabad and later at the Lady Harding College of Nursing in New Delhi. Later when her daughter was married in Punjab, Shoshi went further north and lived there helping to raise her grandchildren. She died in the hills where her daughter had built her home in an apple orchard in the Kulu hills.
As the psalmist says in Psalm 68:5 in the Message version: Father of orphans, champion of widows, is God in His holy house. Shoshi's life makes this verse come alive. She was never alone or forsaken even through the toughest times of her life. Her faith in the Blood sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross for her personally makes her testimony an encouragement to me that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever, Lord and Ruler of our destiny when we surrender ourselves to Him.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Transformed
It never ceases to amaze me how a life can be changed and yet it happens! I've been working for a Christian NGO which works among the beggars and slum children in Secunderabad. Whenever I have gone to the weekly feeding programme, there are more than hundred beggars who come for it. They look seedy, slimy, smelly, and all the worst possible adjectives I can think of! Yet they come, not just for the food packet they get, but also for the hope that they receive. This programme is funded entirely by the giving of some faithful people, who have a burden for such underprivileged people.
I used to be affronted by beggars one meets at traffic light crossroads, who sometimes force you to give to them. Many times I would quickly roll up the car window if it was open, and look the other way so as not to make eye contact with the person. It seemed to me that they were pretending and acting because they looked quite hale and hearty except for the quivers and the shakes they would manifest. I would just feel upset and angry. But I would very quietly give to some beggars with twisted arms and legs or physically challenged in any way.
It was only after studying the Bible that I decided to do something about it. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament speak about giving to the poor. The verses I found were Deuteronomy 24:21, where the Lord admonishes, "When thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard, thou shalt not glean it afterward: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow." The word of God is filled with the promise of blessings to those who regard the needs of the needy around them. In Psalm 41:1, the Lord promises, "Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble." In Proverbs 19:17, we are assured, "He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again." And again in Proverbs 28:27, the Lord pledges to us, "He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack:"
Turning to the New Testament in Matthew 6:2, Jesus instructs us on how to give alms in a manner that is pleasing to God, "Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward." His admonition does not say "if you give alms." Rather He states, "when you give alms." Paul understood this and states in Galatians 2:10, "Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do." Again Paul states in 2 Corinthians 9:9, "....he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever."
Such verses changed my thinking and I realized that I need to give to the poor without any negative feelings inside of me. I teamed up with this NGO which gives to the poor and have been so fulfilled ever since.
This one story really made me take notice of the fact that God can change anybody's heart, however evil and wicked they may have been. Once they receive God's forgiveness, their lives are transformed. Maulana's testimony is really amazing. Maulana Saheb was a shepherd in Srikakulam and ran away and came to Secunderabad. He became a thief and lived by stealing. One day he came to the adult beggar's ministry near the Secunderabad railway station and learned that there is a better way to live. He accepted the Lord Jesus as his personal Saviour and his life was changed. He stopped stealing and instead learned to be a mason, working in construction of houses. He is a joyful man and prays everyday and gives sound advice to other beggars to stop stealing, ragpicking and living as a thief and do work honestly and God will bless them. Now he has a steady job and is working honestly. He is a changed person. Only God's transformation lasts to eternity!
I used to be affronted by beggars one meets at traffic light crossroads, who sometimes force you to give to them. Many times I would quickly roll up the car window if it was open, and look the other way so as not to make eye contact with the person. It seemed to me that they were pretending and acting because they looked quite hale and hearty except for the quivers and the shakes they would manifest. I would just feel upset and angry. But I would very quietly give to some beggars with twisted arms and legs or physically challenged in any way.
It was only after studying the Bible that I decided to do something about it. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament speak about giving to the poor. The verses I found were Deuteronomy 24:21, where the Lord admonishes, "When thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard, thou shalt not glean it afterward: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow." The word of God is filled with the promise of blessings to those who regard the needs of the needy around them. In Psalm 41:1, the Lord promises, "Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble." In Proverbs 19:17, we are assured, "He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again." And again in Proverbs 28:27, the Lord pledges to us, "He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack:"
Turning to the New Testament in Matthew 6:2, Jesus instructs us on how to give alms in a manner that is pleasing to God, "Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward." His admonition does not say "if you give alms." Rather He states, "when you give alms." Paul understood this and states in Galatians 2:10, "Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do." Again Paul states in 2 Corinthians 9:9, "....he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever."
Such verses changed my thinking and I realized that I need to give to the poor without any negative feelings inside of me. I teamed up with this NGO which gives to the poor and have been so fulfilled ever since.
This one story really made me take notice of the fact that God can change anybody's heart, however evil and wicked they may have been. Once they receive God's forgiveness, their lives are transformed. Maulana's testimony is really amazing. Maulana Saheb was a shepherd in Srikakulam and ran away and came to Secunderabad. He became a thief and lived by stealing. One day he came to the adult beggar's ministry near the Secunderabad railway station and learned that there is a better way to live. He accepted the Lord Jesus as his personal Saviour and his life was changed. He stopped stealing and instead learned to be a mason, working in construction of houses. He is a joyful man and prays everyday and gives sound advice to other beggars to stop stealing, ragpicking and living as a thief and do work honestly and God will bless them. Now he has a steady job and is working honestly. He is a changed person. Only God's transformation lasts to eternity!
Monday, May 10, 2010
Sunrise at 22 Wellington Enclave
On a hot summer day, the sunrise from our terrace is a cool experience! So beautiful to see the orange orb gliding up the clear blue and orange horizon - the colours are just too pretty and defy explanation! It is an experience really and something the vocabulary limits. We have kind of settled in, into our new place. We wake up in the morning to the AOC Centre military bugle playing the reveille and that is another experience....this, along with all kinds of birds tweeting and flying around. In our old home, we had got used to the day and night traffic and with the foliage reducing, so were the birds, we didn't see house sparrows for years in that area. In addition, the building up of malls and high rise complex has made that a very commercial place. The road next to our home there has become a link road to the hi-tech city. Here, we can actually hear the birds! It is much quieter here and I appreciate that, being a small-town person!
We have a little patch of a garden which is now full of pots and plants from the old place. Before the monsoons, I must lay some new grass for the lawn. The rest of the enclave where we stay has pretty gardens and the landscaping of this place is neat and pleasing to the eye. I'm not much of a gardener but am inspired by the gardens around here. It is a little more of hard work because the soil is not so fertile and has to be replenished with fertilizers etc. But I did get my Easter lilies, some white and some red, and that was satisfying.
This is a town house with other similiar houses, about thirty of them, some on the main road and ours is inside the enclave and somewhat in the centre. Our earlier place was an independent bungalow. The advantage of being here is that the electrician, the plumber, the carpenter are all on call here and oblige us willingly whenever we call. Infact the electrican is the best I've ever encountered in Hyderabad/Secunderabad up till now!
I'm now looking forward to having friends and family over and stay with us. We have a couple of spare bedrooms now, unlike the old place. Summer is not the best time to be in Hyderabad but from end June till February, Hyderabad/Secunderabad is a beautiful place to be in.
It is great to live in Marredpally, Secunderabad, I am enjoying every moment of it!
Monday, April 19, 2010
Honoring Mama on her 80th!
This was a momentous occasion for us as brothers and sisters to have the opportunity to honour our mother on her eightieth birthday and I am grateful to God for this. It was a total surprise for her as she thought that there would be a prayer meeting and dinner on her birthday and that was about it. But her day began as usual with all the birthday phonecalls from far and wide. We had planned this elaborate day for her about a month and a half in advance. We planned to arrive in Chandigarh the day before and surprise her on the morning of her birthday and what a surprise it was! Not only was she shocked to see Nafisa and me but also my cousin Vimal and his wife Aruna and kids Sahil and Rhea and also my cousin Premal from Allahabad as well. Then the grandchildren hijacked her to have lunch and spend the day at my sister's home, while we got busy getting the house done and the preparations for not only the prayer meeting with Punjabi Zaburs and songs by the Chandigarh Bible Fellowship, but also the dinner for about fifty odd people with the shamiana being put outside and the catering to be done. By the time she got home in the evening, she knew that this was bigger than she had thought of.
Well, the evening was such a joy, because it started with Rohini participating from Canada via Skype on video. Mama got her big gift from us all - a lovely Lenovo computer with easy access to the internet and the use of Skype! Talk about being zapped, even though she has emailed a little and skyped a bit, Mama never thought that she could own her own computer since she can't see very well. This computer is a big size one and she can see the print in large size and even though she takes her time, she can get by, and the joy of talking to her loved ones is well worth it for her! Shalini and Amal, Sushant and Kavita had organized the whole thing to a T, even doing the test run on the Skype secretly from Kavita's office on her laptop late in the night, with Mama thinking that Kavita is really working overtime! Kavita also worked hard on making a lovely scrapbook with all Mama's siblings and in-laws, children, nieces and nephews, grandchildren and grandnieces and grandnephews and friends putting in their handwritten bit and this was presented to her as well.
The fun part of it was the grandkids singing "We are Family" for her with the accompaniment from Diya's cellphone. Later, the children sang a song, penned by me with inputs from Kavita and Rohini and Rohini giving us the tune, which she taught us through voicemail to every one of us. We were able to put it together quite decently for Mama and she was touched and amused by it! Proshant, Nihar and Siddy and Viky got Mama a cake in the shape of a huge 80, very pretty and very tasty. The fellowship was good and so was the meal. Mama enjoyed it and so did we.
Shuniela Rubra was born on April 10, eighty years ago to Anand Benjamin and Sushila Chandulal, their eldest child, in Simla. She had two younger brothers - Jangbahadur Anandswaroop and Asanand Allahyar. Soon after her youngest brother's birth, her parents shifted to Narowal in Pakistan where her father pastored a village church. He died when she was seven years old and she studied in the boarding at Kinnaird School, Lahore. When she was in her first year at Isabella Thoburn College in Lucknow, Pakistan came into being and her mother, grandmother and brothers had to be uprooted from the family home in Narowal and come to Tarn Taran in Punjab, India where they started life afresh. That is where she met her future husband, Eric Das, the youngest son of Dr. & Mrs. Andrew Prabhu Das. Eric insisted on marrying Shuniela inspite of her not having completed her college and her mother was constrained to agree, so at eighteen Shuniela Chandulal became Shuniela Das. She had five children, Rohini being the eldest, then Shalini, and myself, then Sushant and finally Proshant. By that time Chandigarh the new city of independent India had come into being and Eric and Shuniela made their home there. Shuniela completed her education with Eric's support and then went on to become a teacher, teaching at Auckland House School and St. Edward's School in Simla and later at St. John's School in Chandigarh. She became a proud grandmother in 1977 when Karan was born and has six other grandchildren and two great grandchildren. She took premature retirement in order to look after her ailing husband in 1987 when he had a stroke which paralysed him partially. She became a widow in 1995 but has participated vigorously in looking after her various grandchildren from time to time. She is an enthusiastic churchgoer and attends two churches on most Sundays - the Chandigarh Bible Fellowship where her son Sushant is one of the elders and she is part of their worship team as well as the small cell group and she has her own prayer group that meets on Tuesday mornings and then she attends the evening service at the Christ Church CNI where she is part of the evening church choir. She is a social lady, and still is in touch with some of her school friends; she attends on occasion my father's retired Forest Dept. group that meets once a month; she goes for her walk in the neighbourhood and has a different set of friends nearby and she connects with her old teaching colleagues now and then. She loves spending time with the younger generation!
I never attended such a hi-tech birthday as this and I'm happy that Mama's eightieth birthday was the first one. May God bless Mama with shalom peace for the rest of her time before eternity!
Well, the evening was such a joy, because it started with Rohini participating from Canada via Skype on video. Mama got her big gift from us all - a lovely Lenovo computer with easy access to the internet and the use of Skype! Talk about being zapped, even though she has emailed a little and skyped a bit, Mama never thought that she could own her own computer since she can't see very well. This computer is a big size one and she can see the print in large size and even though she takes her time, she can get by, and the joy of talking to her loved ones is well worth it for her! Shalini and Amal, Sushant and Kavita had organized the whole thing to a T, even doing the test run on the Skype secretly from Kavita's office on her laptop late in the night, with Mama thinking that Kavita is really working overtime! Kavita also worked hard on making a lovely scrapbook with all Mama's siblings and in-laws, children, nieces and nephews, grandchildren and grandnieces and grandnephews and friends putting in their handwritten bit and this was presented to her as well.
The fun part of it was the grandkids singing "We are Family" for her with the accompaniment from Diya's cellphone. Later, the children sang a song, penned by me with inputs from Kavita and Rohini and Rohini giving us the tune, which she taught us through voicemail to every one of us. We were able to put it together quite decently for Mama and she was touched and amused by it! Proshant, Nihar and Siddy and Viky got Mama a cake in the shape of a huge 80, very pretty and very tasty. The fellowship was good and so was the meal. Mama enjoyed it and so did we.
Shuniela Rubra was born on April 10, eighty years ago to Anand Benjamin and Sushila Chandulal, their eldest child, in Simla. She had two younger brothers - Jangbahadur Anandswaroop and Asanand Allahyar. Soon after her youngest brother's birth, her parents shifted to Narowal in Pakistan where her father pastored a village church. He died when she was seven years old and she studied in the boarding at Kinnaird School, Lahore. When she was in her first year at Isabella Thoburn College in Lucknow, Pakistan came into being and her mother, grandmother and brothers had to be uprooted from the family home in Narowal and come to Tarn Taran in Punjab, India where they started life afresh. That is where she met her future husband, Eric Das, the youngest son of Dr. & Mrs. Andrew Prabhu Das. Eric insisted on marrying Shuniela inspite of her not having completed her college and her mother was constrained to agree, so at eighteen Shuniela Chandulal became Shuniela Das. She had five children, Rohini being the eldest, then Shalini, and myself, then Sushant and finally Proshant. By that time Chandigarh the new city of independent India had come into being and Eric and Shuniela made their home there. Shuniela completed her education with Eric's support and then went on to become a teacher, teaching at Auckland House School and St. Edward's School in Simla and later at St. John's School in Chandigarh. She became a proud grandmother in 1977 when Karan was born and has six other grandchildren and two great grandchildren. She took premature retirement in order to look after her ailing husband in 1987 when he had a stroke which paralysed him partially. She became a widow in 1995 but has participated vigorously in looking after her various grandchildren from time to time. She is an enthusiastic churchgoer and attends two churches on most Sundays - the Chandigarh Bible Fellowship where her son Sushant is one of the elders and she is part of their worship team as well as the small cell group and she has her own prayer group that meets on Tuesday mornings and then she attends the evening service at the Christ Church CNI where she is part of the evening church choir. She is a social lady, and still is in touch with some of her school friends; she attends on occasion my father's retired Forest Dept. group that meets once a month; she goes for her walk in the neighbourhood and has a different set of friends nearby and she connects with her old teaching colleagues now and then. She loves spending time with the younger generation!
I never attended such a hi-tech birthday as this and I'm happy that Mama's eightieth birthday was the first one. May God bless Mama with shalom peace for the rest of her time before eternity!
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Intrusion
Have you ever had an unwelcome visitor? How do we deal with these unwanted situations? Last week, there was an attempted burglary in our home. We had finished a jolly evening of old friends visiting from the UK and had ended rather late, around midnight. That same night at around 3 am, we were woken up by some banging and glass shattering! I had heard that sound even in my deep sleep but it seemed like construction work happening at night. But then the glass shattered and so was our sleep, we woke up and my husband boldly went out making a noise and waking up the watchman and those who stay in the outhouse. Everyone was asleep and I felt like cowering around somewhere. Finally taking courage, I went towards the dining room and saw that someone had tried to come in through the window because the curtain had been pushed aside and tucked behind the now opened wire mesh window this side of the grill that protected intrusion. Then, I went to the kitchen and saw two glass windows broken and some of our kitchen appliances usually kept on the mantel but now on the floor. The banging had happened because the impatient thief had tried to get the grill broken through and didn't succeed and in his frustration, had started banging loudly with a metal rod which was kept outside and used for raking out leaves etc. Of course the burglar loped off in the dark and nobody could tell where or who! The police came and went through the place but no clues as to who it could have been.
It is disconcerting to know that intruders can come inside. These days, burglars are getting bolder and bolder. A spirit of jealousy, greed and covetousness is overpowering people at every level, be they the rich and wealthy or those who are poor and deprived. We have them in our families, amidst our friends and perhaps when we examine ourselves, we too might be prey to jealousy, greed and covetousness. That is why many cannot understand what Jesus has said about wealth and mammon. A rich man wanted to follow Jesus and was told to give away his wealth to do that. The rich man couldn't part with his riches and went away and Jesus loved him but said that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of the needle than for a rich man to enter heaven. The eye of the needle was the narrower aperture gate on the side of the main city gate, in those days. If a traveller came with his cargo on the camel, he had to wait till the next morning outside the big city gate as it was opened only from dawn to dusk and outside the city gate he and his cargo were prey to intruders and thieves. Or else, he had to unload the camel and remove all the baggage and then take it through the narrow gate. Jesus indicated through this situation, that before entering heaven, you have to leave your earthly riches behind. However if your heart is in the wealth and riches then you can't get into heaven.
Jesus tells us in Luke 12:33 Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. If our heart is in worldly wealth and riches then we can't get to heaven, but if our treasure is Jesus and He is all that matters, then we not only get to enjoy riches here on earth but the heavenly riches as well. Because we know the joy of giving and that it is more blessed to give than to receive, we part with worldly wealth without any rancour or resentment and become a channel of God's great generosity. He Who gave us His Son as a sacrifice, will He not freely give us all things through Christ Jesus? God is a Giver and He wants us to make Him - the Giver - our Treasure and part with any worldly treasure with the greatest of ease - that is the secret of a prosperous and successful life!
Intruders will come and intruders will go, but our Treasure will always remain in our hearts!
It is disconcerting to know that intruders can come inside. These days, burglars are getting bolder and bolder. A spirit of jealousy, greed and covetousness is overpowering people at every level, be they the rich and wealthy or those who are poor and deprived. We have them in our families, amidst our friends and perhaps when we examine ourselves, we too might be prey to jealousy, greed and covetousness. That is why many cannot understand what Jesus has said about wealth and mammon. A rich man wanted to follow Jesus and was told to give away his wealth to do that. The rich man couldn't part with his riches and went away and Jesus loved him but said that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of the needle than for a rich man to enter heaven. The eye of the needle was the narrower aperture gate on the side of the main city gate, in those days. If a traveller came with his cargo on the camel, he had to wait till the next morning outside the big city gate as it was opened only from dawn to dusk and outside the city gate he and his cargo were prey to intruders and thieves. Or else, he had to unload the camel and remove all the baggage and then take it through the narrow gate. Jesus indicated through this situation, that before entering heaven, you have to leave your earthly riches behind. However if your heart is in the wealth and riches then you can't get into heaven.
Jesus tells us in Luke 12:33 Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. If our heart is in worldly wealth and riches then we can't get to heaven, but if our treasure is Jesus and He is all that matters, then we not only get to enjoy riches here on earth but the heavenly riches as well. Because we know the joy of giving and that it is more blessed to give than to receive, we part with worldly wealth without any rancour or resentment and become a channel of God's great generosity. He Who gave us His Son as a sacrifice, will He not freely give us all things through Christ Jesus? God is a Giver and He wants us to make Him - the Giver - our Treasure and part with any worldly treasure with the greatest of ease - that is the secret of a prosperous and successful life!
Intruders will come and intruders will go, but our Treasure will always remain in our hearts!
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Of Pets & Pedigrees
We've got a new dog! My family was surprised and so was I when I agreed that we need to have a dog! I'm not an extreme dog-lover though I've lived with dogs all my life! Taking care of pets is another thing altogether. I'm quite sure though that our new dog is more as a watchdog than a companion to me....but Feroz has other ideas! To add to the surprise, we chose a Rottweiller, a pedigree I'm told that is banned in the UK for being unpredictable. Anyway, Simba has arrived and he does not behave unpredictable at all. A three-month old pup, he is big for his size which means he will grow to be a good, huge dog keeping unwanted elements at bay!
I went to the internet for some information on Rottweillers and this is what I got - "The Rottie is powerful, calm, trainable, courageous, and devoted to their owner and family. Loyal and protective, they will defend their family fiercely if needed, seemingly immune to pain. Serious, even-tempered, brave, confident and courageous, this breed needs an owner who is strong minded, calm, but firm and able to handle their massive size. A docile, natural guard dog with a laid-back, reliable temperament. They are highly intelligent and have proven their worth beyond question in police, military, and customs work over many centuries and can be trained for competitive obedience."
Simba is a playful pup and does not have that incessant, high-pitched bark....he is a social dog and loves company. He is very alert, when anyone comes to about 15 ft. distance of him, even if he is lying down, his ears cock up and his head comes up and soon he is on his fours looking at you. Fortunately for Simba, the place where we stay has a lot of area for him to run around in. In a couple of months he will go for a three-month training period and then we will have him as a qualified watchdog!
Before Simba, there was an untrained, wild dog called Chuckles, a misnomer if ever there was one, poor fellow would lunge and bite anyone regardless of family or outsider, and never elicited chuckles from anyone, finally dying on my father-in-law's ninetieth birthday. Prior to that there was Sheru, who ran out of the gate and was run over by a passing car. Then there was Podgy, short for Podgorny, who was perhaps a Dalmatian somewhere, but he had such a funny gait, almost like he was drunk and walking sideways! He ran away and never came back. There were Rinty, Danny and some others whom Feroz talks about, but I remember Podgy quite vividly, as he was around when I first got married and came to Hyderabad!
In my family up in Simla and Chandigarh, I only heard about the legendary Alsatian - Devil, my father's pet companion and after that was Tinker, also an Alsatian. I think it was either Devil or Tinker, who saved my sister, a toddler in her pram, from falling over the hill. Then there was Bonny, a white Alsatian in Chandigarh, and she died a ripe old age. There was Dinky, a white Pomeranian, then Brownie, a Cocker Spaniel and then some piedogs like Laika, Shaitan and now Bagheera, my brother Sushant's dog in Chandigarh.
I came across this verse in Proverbs 12:10 - "A righteous one understands the soul of his animal; but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel." I hope that I can understand Simba's soul and let him do what he does best, to the best! I mean to enjoy him and let him enjoy me!! All of us are enjoying Simba actually!!!
I went to the internet for some information on Rottweillers and this is what I got - "The Rottie is powerful, calm, trainable, courageous, and devoted to their owner and family. Loyal and protective, they will defend their family fiercely if needed, seemingly immune to pain. Serious, even-tempered, brave, confident and courageous, this breed needs an owner who is strong minded, calm, but firm and able to handle their massive size. A docile, natural guard dog with a laid-back, reliable temperament. They are highly intelligent and have proven their worth beyond question in police, military, and customs work over many centuries and can be trained for competitive obedience."
Simba is a playful pup and does not have that incessant, high-pitched bark....he is a social dog and loves company. He is very alert, when anyone comes to about 15 ft. distance of him, even if he is lying down, his ears cock up and his head comes up and soon he is on his fours looking at you. Fortunately for Simba, the place where we stay has a lot of area for him to run around in. In a couple of months he will go for a three-month training period and then we will have him as a qualified watchdog!
Before Simba, there was an untrained, wild dog called Chuckles, a misnomer if ever there was one, poor fellow would lunge and bite anyone regardless of family or outsider, and never elicited chuckles from anyone, finally dying on my father-in-law's ninetieth birthday. Prior to that there was Sheru, who ran out of the gate and was run over by a passing car. Then there was Podgy, short for Podgorny, who was perhaps a Dalmatian somewhere, but he had such a funny gait, almost like he was drunk and walking sideways! He ran away and never came back. There were Rinty, Danny and some others whom Feroz talks about, but I remember Podgy quite vividly, as he was around when I first got married and came to Hyderabad!
In my family up in Simla and Chandigarh, I only heard about the legendary Alsatian - Devil, my father's pet companion and after that was Tinker, also an Alsatian. I think it was either Devil or Tinker, who saved my sister, a toddler in her pram, from falling over the hill. Then there was Bonny, a white Alsatian in Chandigarh, and she died a ripe old age. There was Dinky, a white Pomeranian, then Brownie, a Cocker Spaniel and then some piedogs like Laika, Shaitan and now Bagheera, my brother Sushant's dog in Chandigarh.
I came across this verse in Proverbs 12:10 - "A righteous one understands the soul of his animal; but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel." I hope that I can understand Simba's soul and let him do what he does best, to the best! I mean to enjoy him and let him enjoy me!! All of us are enjoying Simba actually!!!
Thursday, January 7, 2010
A New Year, A New Decade, A New Era
When this decade began, we had ended 2009 in an unsettled way. Feroz's father had not been keeping good health when we were to go to Chandigarh for Christmas. On Nafisa's and my arrival in Chandigarh , we had entered into the Christmas spirit with great gusto trying to do as many things and meet as many people in a short span of time. The days whizzed by. We were not sure if Feroz would be able to come to Chandigarh but he did make it because Nargis my sister-in-law very kindly came from Vancouver to spend time with her father. That allowed Feroz to come and spend Christmas in Chandigarh and it was a lovely family time, with carol singing, wining and dining and all that comes with Christmas with families. Feroz had to return to Hyderabad and be with his father soon after Christmas. The momentum of activities continued even after Feroz left for Hyderabad . We had a great evening of singing Punjabi Zaburs - a tradition of praise and thanksgiving in our north Indian Punjabi Christian culture! 2010 began for us in a remarkable way as we spent the New Year with some youngsters in an orphanage in Chandigarh and that was really fulfilling and meaningful.
The next day we got the sad news of Feroz's uncle, his father's younger brother who every year spent his winter vacation in Hyderabad from upstate New York . He was found dead on the morning of 2nd January in our Hyderabad home and though it was a peaceful end for the uncle, it was quite traumatic for Feroz as he was struggling with providing critical care for his terminally ill father and now was compelled to see to the last rites of his uncle, all by himself. Nafisa and I managed to reach Hyderabad on the 3rd even though flights were being cancelled in Delhi and Chandigarh due to the foggy weather and infact the Delhi airport was closed till the afternoon of 3rd January. It was a miracle that we made it to Hyderabad .
On reaching Hyderabad , we rushed to the ICU of Care Hospital where my father-in-law was admitted and it was sad to see him gasping for breath even when he was on oxygen. He recognized us and we talked to him, telling him that we loved him. It was a poignant time because we all knew that time was coming to an end for him. My father-in-law passed away at 11:40 pm on the 4th of January. As Nargis had returned to Vancouver , she and her husband Jaya had to come back now and they reached on the morning of the 7th. My other sister-in-law Yasmeen and her family came from Bengaluru and we had the funeral on the evening of the 7th. For us as a family an era had come to an end.
My father-in-law Diler Ahmad Shah died at the age of 91 years having lived a full and ripe life, with enjoyment and just the way he wanted to. Till a month before he died, he had been to church which was his custom for many years on Sundays and also he had come to hear me sing with the Festival Choristers when we sang at the Taj Krishna on the 2nd of December, 2009. He was involved with many organizations at the local and at the national level and left his mark in Hyderabad society. Many from the YMCA, different church denominations, the Hyderabad Management Association, the Hyderabad Film Club, the Hyderabad Cricket Association, the Hyderabad Public School Society, the Nizam's Trust, the Secunderabad Club and other groups remembered and paid tribute to him at his funeral. He used to participate in our church carecell which met at our home and would get involved actively in discussions. At one of them, he confessed that he had accepted Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour as a young man at a church meeting in his hometown Lucknow . This is the blessed assurance we have, that we will meet my father-in-law in eternity because he called upon the Name of Jesus. When we face death on earth, it is only Jesus Who can bring us to our eternal home to rest with Him in heaven. How blessed is the death of a Christian, because we sleep in Christ and when we awake, we are in His Presence, absent in the body but present with the Lord, how wonderful, how marvellous!
As we begin this new year, this new decade and indeed this new era, we know that Jesus has promised us in Isaiah 42:9-10 - "Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I declare; before they happen, I cause you to hear. Sing to Jehovah a new song; His praise from the end of the earth..." As we enter into the new era, I believe the God of the Bible, will lead, guide and direct us by His Holy Spirit, as we sing His praise to the ends of the earth with a new song.
The next day we got the sad news of Feroz's uncle, his father's younger brother who every year spent his winter vacation in Hyderabad from upstate New York . He was found dead on the morning of 2nd January in our Hyderabad home and though it was a peaceful end for the uncle, it was quite traumatic for Feroz as he was struggling with providing critical care for his terminally ill father and now was compelled to see to the last rites of his uncle, all by himself. Nafisa and I managed to reach Hyderabad on the 3rd even though flights were being cancelled in Delhi and Chandigarh due to the foggy weather and infact the Delhi airport was closed till the afternoon of 3rd January. It was a miracle that we made it to Hyderabad .
On reaching Hyderabad , we rushed to the ICU of Care Hospital where my father-in-law was admitted and it was sad to see him gasping for breath even when he was on oxygen. He recognized us and we talked to him, telling him that we loved him. It was a poignant time because we all knew that time was coming to an end for him. My father-in-law passed away at 11:40 pm on the 4th of January. As Nargis had returned to Vancouver , she and her husband Jaya had to come back now and they reached on the morning of the 7th. My other sister-in-law Yasmeen and her family came from Bengaluru and we had the funeral on the evening of the 7th. For us as a family an era had come to an end.
My father-in-law Diler Ahmad Shah died at the age of 91 years having lived a full and ripe life, with enjoyment and just the way he wanted to. Till a month before he died, he had been to church which was his custom for many years on Sundays and also he had come to hear me sing with the Festival Choristers when we sang at the Taj Krishna on the 2nd of December, 2009. He was involved with many organizations at the local and at the national level and left his mark in Hyderabad society. Many from the YMCA, different church denominations, the Hyderabad Management Association, the Hyderabad Film Club, the Hyderabad Cricket Association, the Hyderabad Public School Society, the Nizam's Trust, the Secunderabad Club and other groups remembered and paid tribute to him at his funeral. He used to participate in our church carecell which met at our home and would get involved actively in discussions. At one of them, he confessed that he had accepted Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour as a young man at a church meeting in his hometown Lucknow . This is the blessed assurance we have, that we will meet my father-in-law in eternity because he called upon the Name of Jesus. When we face death on earth, it is only Jesus Who can bring us to our eternal home to rest with Him in heaven. How blessed is the death of a Christian, because we sleep in Christ and when we awake, we are in His Presence, absent in the body but present with the Lord, how wonderful, how marvellous!
As we begin this new year, this new decade and indeed this new era, we know that Jesus has promised us in Isaiah 42:9-10 - "Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I declare; before they happen, I cause you to hear. Sing to Jehovah a new song; His praise from the end of the earth..." As we enter into the new era, I believe the God of the Bible, will lead, guide and direct us by His Holy Spirit, as we sing His praise to the ends of the earth with a new song.
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