Ideally Gandhi’s birth
anniversary should be about spreading purity, cleanliness is close enough. Purity
is something special in this part of the world, for some it is the only quantified
purpose in life. Every occasion seems to be an occasion to search for purity,
as if the whole world is dependent on it. For the last 70 odd years on Oct 2nd
it’s been a free run as they use the government machinery and state might to
impose their ideas about world, and crucially how to live in it, on people. There
seem to be some elevated plane where the blessed people dwell and patiently wait
for such occasion to teach us, to guide us, to replicate the putrefying pit.
Nowhere else in the world they will be imposing vegetarianism on people or ban liquor
that too for some self-conceived moral reasons. But in here they do, and they do
with such moral authority that democracy is reduced to be a mere conduit. On
Oct 2nd every year (the list of days is now set to grow) state’s
true character as agents of sanctum scum is on display. On this day sale of
meat, fish and liquor is banned, as if implying that there is something wrong in
savouring these and that lowly people needs to purify themselves and should be compulsorily
trained to show restraint in these ‘lowly acts’, atleast on the day ‘mahatma’
dropped in. Wtf.
Understand this vegetarianism is
not about compassion in this part of the world, although they may mask it as
such (like liberal masquerade), nor nonviolence from lack of violence by
peaceful brutes. I was reading an interesting piece the other day that
postulated tolerance is not a moral absolute, this in context to soul churning
moments after the white supremacists, with Nazi symbols, moved around public
space in US and drivelled it as freedom of choice and speech. Also, where the
head of the state lacks ethical certitude; trained and prospered in market
manipulations and victories of the moment nothing much is expected from him. “Tolerance is not a moral
absolute; it is a peace treaty. Tolerance is a social norm because it
allows different people to live side-by-side without being at each other’s
throats. It means that we accept that people may be different from us, in their
customs, in their behavior, in their dress, in their sex lives, and that if
this doesn’t directly affect our lives, it is none of our business. But the
model of a peace treaty differs from the model of a moral precept in one simple
way: the protection of a peace treaty only extends to those willing to abide by
its terms. It is an agreement to live in peace, not an
agreement to be peaceful no matter the conduct of others. A peace treaty is not
a suicide pact”. So if it doesn’t affect our
life, it is none of our business. It is in the same context one must add that
religions are detrimentally effecting the society and the expressions of these are
becoming serious threat. Hence if it is advocating violence, segregations,
discriminations, patriarchy so on and if ignores rational values and
understanding -that are achieved after thousands of years of efforts, then it affects
the social wellbeing therefore cannot be ignored.
So
what do you do when things are imposed on you? What to eat? When to not eat? What
to drink? Who are these scoundrels to decide even for a second what I should
and should not eat? Also consider that this society suffers from severe
malnutrition and poverty, over that now this nonsense. This control is a
serious breach of human rights. Casteist forces, under the guile of liberal,
could only go this far in their starch khadi,
now hindutva forces will attempt to take it to the next level. They have been
handed over the template with blessing. These attempts at spreading depraved sanctum
purity in the name of gandhi on common people should be resisted. I was
reading somewhere that Hope has two daughters Anger and Courage, and so if you
want hope to survive in this bleak world be angry, be very angry. Any breach by
unethical frames on common people’s life must be resisted. These violations are
happening for too long with impunity.
On
this ‘Purity Day’ strongly resist every attempt that is made to intrude your
world by some of the worst kind of people. Eat fish masala or chicken curry on
this day, and yes brandy in crackling soda should go down well. Being non vegetarian is an act of compassion in this society, as much as claims of non violence is a sick joke.
