It was mid-day. The sun was above the horizon, pouring in heat so much as though it was it's last day. Pulling the huge cart carrying over 100 kilos of rice bags, my palms were crying out in pain. My vest was fully drenched , my face and arms soaked in sweat as though I came straight out of a pond after a bath. Walking on the road bare foot was like lying on a bed of thorns, lit on fire. My arms asked me to stop, but deep within I knew that if I stopped, Sarah would have to go to bed empty stomached. Sarah, my little sister , the only family I've left of is my motivation and the sole reason why I was alive today.
While I toiled my way along the scotching road, I heard someone call out in the distant background, "Aalim!", "Mohammed!". I ignored the call as pain kept my body per-occupied.
As I delivered my cart at the destination, I noticed the mosque opposite was abuzz with people. The board above read "Shahi Masjid, Mount Road". A sea of humanity pouring in and out, the loud speakers blaring out the sacred chants, pigeons perching on the structure dominated by Islamic architecture.
I was wondering why these people believed in something that didn't even have a proof that it existed. I had completely lost faith on god, on my religion Islam. If there was really a god, he wouldn't have taken away my mother and father when I was at an age where I couldn't even comprehend death. If there really was a god, he wouldn't have left me suffer when I was supposed to bathe under my parents' care. Would there be a god, why did he leave me and Sarah orphaned? The ideology of god and the philosophy of Religion made no more sense to me, and I only made a silent mockery of those people, deep within every cell of my body burning in anger.
And then I saw her; that little girl, of the same age of Sarah. Her face was gleaming with joy, eyes wide open as saucers and a curve on her lips as beautiful as the moon. She was coming out of a toy store, clasping a barbie doll. It seemed like it was her birthday.
Deep within, guilt started to take it's turn. I chocked. My mind became void. How long had it been since I saw that joy on Sarah's face, I asked myself. Afterall,it too was her birthday today.
I reached out to the pocket of my loose and heavily soiled shirt. As though I would find some treasure, I dug out deeper into my torn pocket, only to find a single old five rupee note. I wanted to gift Sarah a chocolate.
What I did next, the next few minutes, changed my life forever - eternally. The busy road was never devoid of public transport buses. I walked up to the nearest bus stop as though there was no soul in my body and waited there. I waited for a bus that was heavily crowded. I boarded, destination unknown. Somehow, a strange feeling crept in. I felt like all the people around me seemed very happy. It seemed like I was the only one toiling.
And then I saw him. Clad in a blue stripes shirt, tucked in, he seemed to be in his early twenties. He had his head phones on. I moved close to him, as though he were my acquaintance. I couldn't resist seeing the smile on Sarah's face had I took out his wallet! Yes, I wasn't ashamed of what I was thinking. Somehow, what I was going to do felt perfectly morally justified to me.
My heart pounded. I began to sweat. My legs started to tremble. My hands began to shiver. I cautiously reached out to his back pocket, with eyes wide open making sure nobody was watching me. I slipped my hand into his pocket, clasping his fat wallet gently but firmly.
My blood flowed so fast that I felt it speed past my legs and arms. I almost took out the bulk wallet out of his pocket. Every inch the wallet came out of his pocket, I was an inch closer to seeing Sarah smile. It was a cocktail of emotions influencing my mind.
I had almost made it. It was when I, along with the rest of the bus hear someone scream "Pick Pocket!". And at that moment I realised it was the end of me and I was going home with fractured bones and bruised face. Responding to the scream, the whole bus stared at me, while my hand was still inside his pocket. Fear gripped me, my body froze and I watched helplessly as everyone around me prepared themselves to thrash me.
Amidst all this drama, I almost forgot to notice how calm and unshaken that man was. He displayed no visible signs of anger nor did he have any intention to harm me. As I laid there standstill making up my mind, the beatings had already begun. That's when he swung into action. He not only stopped them from beating me up, but looked straight into my eyes. Grabbing his wallet from my hand, he swiftly opened it and rigourously searched it. What he did next changed my entire perspective.
He took out a ₹1000 note and handed over it to me. As the people around me stood in amazement at his unbelievable composition and his paramount act of kindness, my eyes started to water. I felt as though something heavy was pushing me to the ground. Guilt gripped me tight and hard.
That day many things changed in me. I realised that god didn't live in the stone statues, not in the heavens, god didn't live on the printed images, not in the idols kept at home. Instead, god lived within the kindness that one could show to another. What god couldn't teach me, what religion couldn't teach me all these years, a complete stranger has taught me. Afterall, god lived within us, each and every one of us. We're all gods. Let us be kinder to one another. From that day, I was not the same Aalim Mohammed.
-Aditya Arun.V
While I toiled my way along the scotching road, I heard someone call out in the distant background, "Aalim!", "Mohammed!". I ignored the call as pain kept my body per-occupied.
As I delivered my cart at the destination, I noticed the mosque opposite was abuzz with people. The board above read "Shahi Masjid, Mount Road". A sea of humanity pouring in and out, the loud speakers blaring out the sacred chants, pigeons perching on the structure dominated by Islamic architecture.
I was wondering why these people believed in something that didn't even have a proof that it existed. I had completely lost faith on god, on my religion Islam. If there was really a god, he wouldn't have taken away my mother and father when I was at an age where I couldn't even comprehend death. If there really was a god, he wouldn't have left me suffer when I was supposed to bathe under my parents' care. Would there be a god, why did he leave me and Sarah orphaned? The ideology of god and the philosophy of Religion made no more sense to me, and I only made a silent mockery of those people, deep within every cell of my body burning in anger.
And then I saw her; that little girl, of the same age of Sarah. Her face was gleaming with joy, eyes wide open as saucers and a curve on her lips as beautiful as the moon. She was coming out of a toy store, clasping a barbie doll. It seemed like it was her birthday.
Deep within, guilt started to take it's turn. I chocked. My mind became void. How long had it been since I saw that joy on Sarah's face, I asked myself. Afterall,it too was her birthday today.
I reached out to the pocket of my loose and heavily soiled shirt. As though I would find some treasure, I dug out deeper into my torn pocket, only to find a single old five rupee note. I wanted to gift Sarah a chocolate.
What I did next, the next few minutes, changed my life forever - eternally. The busy road was never devoid of public transport buses. I walked up to the nearest bus stop as though there was no soul in my body and waited there. I waited for a bus that was heavily crowded. I boarded, destination unknown. Somehow, a strange feeling crept in. I felt like all the people around me seemed very happy. It seemed like I was the only one toiling.
And then I saw him. Clad in a blue stripes shirt, tucked in, he seemed to be in his early twenties. He had his head phones on. I moved close to him, as though he were my acquaintance. I couldn't resist seeing the smile on Sarah's face had I took out his wallet! Yes, I wasn't ashamed of what I was thinking. Somehow, what I was going to do felt perfectly morally justified to me.
My heart pounded. I began to sweat. My legs started to tremble. My hands began to shiver. I cautiously reached out to his back pocket, with eyes wide open making sure nobody was watching me. I slipped my hand into his pocket, clasping his fat wallet gently but firmly.
My blood flowed so fast that I felt it speed past my legs and arms. I almost took out the bulk wallet out of his pocket. Every inch the wallet came out of his pocket, I was an inch closer to seeing Sarah smile. It was a cocktail of emotions influencing my mind.
I had almost made it. It was when I, along with the rest of the bus hear someone scream "Pick Pocket!". And at that moment I realised it was the end of me and I was going home with fractured bones and bruised face. Responding to the scream, the whole bus stared at me, while my hand was still inside his pocket. Fear gripped me, my body froze and I watched helplessly as everyone around me prepared themselves to thrash me.
Amidst all this drama, I almost forgot to notice how calm and unshaken that man was. He displayed no visible signs of anger nor did he have any intention to harm me. As I laid there standstill making up my mind, the beatings had already begun. That's when he swung into action. He not only stopped them from beating me up, but looked straight into my eyes. Grabbing his wallet from my hand, he swiftly opened it and rigourously searched it. What he did next changed my entire perspective.
He took out a ₹1000 note and handed over it to me. As the people around me stood in amazement at his unbelievable composition and his paramount act of kindness, my eyes started to water. I felt as though something heavy was pushing me to the ground. Guilt gripped me tight and hard.
That day many things changed in me. I realised that god didn't live in the stone statues, not in the heavens, god didn't live on the printed images, not in the idols kept at home. Instead, god lived within the kindness that one could show to another. What god couldn't teach me, what religion couldn't teach me all these years, a complete stranger has taught me. Afterall, god lived within us, each and every one of us. We're all gods. Let us be kinder to one another. From that day, I was not the same Aalim Mohammed.
-Aditya Arun.V
