The Forgotten Faith

In love with the divine

                              ***
Those who are free from resentful thoughts always find peace.
                             ***
The following morning was an auspicious day for me. My new found faith that I had lost a year ago was again housed in my heart and with that a new feeling that I couldn’t name. This morning the first thing on my to-do list was to go and visit the Varanasi temples, the shiva temples in particular that I had ignored all along.

We visited the Kaal Bhairav, Mrutyumjai Mahadev and the new Vishwanath temple. As we now ascended the stairs of the Kashi Vishwanath, I remembered all what had happened just a day ago and how now my feelings were completely opposite to what they were then. Each and every stair I climbed, I went closer to him. I could feel his energy, calling me towards him. And Amar, I couldn’t look up at him. A strange feeling was building up in the pit of my stomach. This kind of a nervousness, this kind of a shyness I never felt before. Maybe I had started to like him, considering how caring he was and all that he had done for me.

The Kashi Vishwanath that I had failed to praise on my first visit, now stood tall with open arms, accepting me. It was an immense structure having three domes that were made of pure gold. It is said that this temple had been built and rebuilt again and again in the course of time after facing demolition by various rulers. The current structure had been built in the eighteenth century. 

As beautiful it was from the outside, so was it from the inside. The main sanctum had a silver platform on which the great lingam made of brown stone was placed. The lingam, symbolic of Shiva’s great energy. Maybe I imagined it but I could see the energy emanating from the lingam and spreading in every direction.

I joined my hands and prayed to my beloved God. To forgive my mistake and to accept me as his devotee again.

“Tathastu.” Whispered Amar into my ear.

I opened my eyes and smiled at him.
We then visited as many ghats as possible, Assi ghat, manikarnika ghat, etc. And then finally it was time to leave. The meeting I had come for was scheduled for the evening and tomorrow we would head back home.

                                                                            ***
“Hey, I brought something for you.” He said.

“What?” I asked.

He fished out a small wooden box from his pocket and presented it to me.

“What is this?” I asked excitedly.

“See for yourself.”

I took the box in my hand and opened it. There was a shining silver locket inside, a locket that was shaped like a trident. It was beautiful; the best gift I had ever received.

I picked it up in my hand.

“Wear it.” He grinned.

“Thank you for this gift. I don’t know how you do it, but thanks for knowing exactly what I want always.”  I thanked him and then wore the chain around my neck.