Telling The Gods

It is time for the elephant-headed god to make His annual sojourn to our homes and localities. Ganesha evokes not just devotion and piety but the sweets offered to him make for a delightful prasad. A 10-day Ganesh festival lends a divine touch to ordinary streets and alleys with decorated pandals, chants and bhajans being sung through the day.

There are many people who say, when they stand in front of God, they don’t ask for anything, for they are overwhelmed. I have read about this too. It is like their wishes are fulfilled by just seeing Him. I wish I could be like that. I am forever asking of God. Many a time I get scolded, by those who accompany me to a place of worship, for praying for a long time. “What are you praying so much?”, I am often asked. “I am telling Him what I want.” On every occasion, I get raised eyebrows and upturned palms as gestures for saying this.

I am unable to understand why no one can fathom what I do. I go to a place of worship to say thanks and to ask for my needs to be fulfilled. I wish folks would understand me as I have no complaints about them not asking, as they claim. I believe in a God and I want Him to know there are things I want Him to help me with. “God knows about you and you don’t need to tell Him,” I am told. Well, I just want to reiterate.

Recently, I went to a place of worship. Here, one can write one's wishes and desires on paper chits (provided here for this purpose), pray and then drop it into a box. There were just three lines on the paper chit to write one’s wishes. A friend and I were there together. My friend took the paper and then in a few minutes dropped it into the box. I continued to stare at the paper. I wondered how to cramp three lines with my wishes.

A few minutes later, my friend called out to me. I looked up and she said, “Can you please hurry up?” I nodded, wrote some more and then put the carefully folded paper into the box after a quick prayer.

When we came out, she asked, “What were you writing so much in there?” I said, “My wishes.” “How many slips of paper did you take?” I looked at her and said, “Why would I take more than a slip of paper? You gave me just one.” She said, “Then why were you writing so long? There were just three lines.” Of course there were only three lines. But I wrote 1 a.b.c, 2 a.b.c. and 3 a.b.c for each wish. She looked at me incredulous. “How could you?” Why not, I thought. I wasn’t asking any human being for anything. I was asking of my God.

Now I have 10 days to go up to Lord Ganesh beginning tomorrow and tell Him my wishes!