JUST TWO DAYS, MORE!
[ Author’s note: In Hindu mythological folklore God’s agent Chitragupta is the gate-keeper of Heaven and Yamraj is the messenger of death]
Once Yamraj came and picked up Budhu from earth. When Budhu reached the gate of heaven, he was awe-struck finding Chitragupta sitting with his giant record books - keeping the stock of continuous flow of life and death. Every entry in heaven’s book must have a reciprocal entry of exit for earth’s record book too. Double work, but no double pay! Sometimes the entries were missed in either of the books. Human beings created a fine idiom – human is to err.
All mistakes deliberate or not, should be forgiven by God. But not the same stood true for heavenly lives – God carved heavenly residents unmistakably fault-free – pure soul and a pure body. But the truth was a bit different. Chitragupta knew that too well, being the inventory-keeper. Sometimes books didn’t tally. But Chitragupta found a way out – an account head for inventory manipulation – “Suspence”, was invented; but the Suspence account never created any suspense in heaven’s doors. Any error,
any trouble, Chitraguta honestly led them with confidence into Suspence to cross tally the death toll in heaven. No trace for fallible earthy creatures to challenge God.
Budhu looked around at this seemingly unheard place - God's residence and human pilgrimage! Oh! It’s heaven! A milky river was flowing down. Rows of trees of unknown genre in VIBGYOR color ornamented the banks. Sunshine, sweet like a snow cream bowed down to him, eager to melt on his skin. A chanting of Om! Om! thickened the air with re-vibrating energy.
Two parrots and a crowd of sparrows sped past his head , putting his hair in disarray. Many birds were singing from green huge trees. Many ripe fruits were hanging from branches, creating a sense of human hunger in his abdomen . He couldn’t resist counting -apples, oranges, bananas, some jack-fruits, even grapes were hanging. No scarcity here! Oh my God! Manicured roads were all carpeted with gold. The Entry-gate looked like a giant architectural piece of art, made with gold, diamonds and rare gems of the universe. The road went too far and disappeared with a slow zig-zag turn behind a hilly terrain. The both sides of the roads welcomed with many flower plants swaying in an indescribable dance style – in many inviting colors. There were a few new colors too, which he never came across on earth.Air was majestic!
Naturally, heaven was a heaven. One couldn’t compare it with dirty earth! – Budhu thought with a tinge of amusement.
Budhu noticed that a human like creature was standing before Chitragupta . Bright rays were radiating from his body. He was looking into those giant books. Perhaps an auditor! Heaven too had its own brand of auditors and spies! Chitragupta was very tense explaining the record book entries to the heavenly auditor.
Budhu, took a few steps closer, overheard some of their conversations – both were tensed.
“why the human stock in your book is so high ? See the physical count report.” The Heaven’s auditor was asking him. ”Look here. What a huge difference! Are
you helping chicken hearted humans to drop out of heaven ?’’
“No,sir, no. Heaven’s account can never ever be wrong.”, Chitragupta was turning into a nervous wreck and his heart was beating faster after telling this blunt lie.
“Chitragupta? Stock of rat cat and dog is so small here!! Are they not dying?”
“They are not, sir. Humans are taking more care of pets than their mums and dads, sir. You see the Joomraj’s report. Very astonishing! A good sign in deed! There are more hungry humans on earth than hungry rat cat and dogs.”
”Then the stock book I presume is okay for the pets account. Good job,Chitra!” The heaven’s auditor was apparently happy with the reply. After exchanging a few
more words, the auditor vanished into air.
While Chitragupta was busy with God’s emissary, Budhu was still standing in a queue outside heaven’s check-post waiting to face Chitragupta. That gate-keeper, he had heard for years, was the only authority to issue admission tickets on a small chit, marked with: “where to put in heaven….God’s kitchen, or God’s dance troupe or God’s army or any other vacant post in heaven or even God’s toiletry.”
Budhu was standing in a queue and waiting for his turn. His eyes glowed with glimpses of hope. A quick smile danced through his lips. Yes, heaven was not all that fool-proof. There were sufficient hints in the conversation that had been taking place in front of them. Message was clear - give a try and go back to earth for a few more days till you are caught by Yamraj again. It would be not a bad idea to offer a few gold coins in Chitragupta’s purse for him to gladly arrange for a journey back home. He remembered reading somewhere that heaven was a replica of earth. If corruption, hatred, inequality and injustices were breeding so heavily on earth before the eyes and ears of God, perhaps same could be found in heaven. But Budhu was feeling sad. His death came so abruptly that he couldn’t fulfill many of his wishes. He wanted to go back to earth and to live for just two more days and fulfill those wishes.
“Last wishes? How many?’’ When Budhu spoke to Chitragupta, the heaven’s gate-keeper, hurled him those two questions.
Chitragupta checked his antecedents from the giant human section of record book:
-o-
Name – Sougat. But his friends used to call him Budhu as he often behaved foolishly. He lost his penniless father at the age of five. Then he and his family of mum and two sisters struggled for financial security and comfort. Made a turnaround in his fortunes. He has no friends now on earth. All his relatives were arch foes and envious of his success. He never compromised on duties and challenged those who shun it. His earth was too small. His sun used to rise and set around the families of married sisters, nephews and nieces, his mum and his own family of spouse and a son. He leads an honest saintly life doing his homely duties. Sometimes he wanted to gather enough courage to revolt against social anarchy. But he was too weak a mortal to give up the shelter of family ties and to become a social crusader. He left behind sufficient properties for his one grown-up well-settled son and forty-year old homely spouse.
-o-
That was all in record.
Now Chitragupta looked up. Budhu began to cry like a child. “Please… please give me a chance. I want to see my sisters, my wife and son and my mom for once, please.”
“Why Budhu? Haven’t you seen enough of them in your fifty-year span of life?”
“No, sir ! I didn’t. I didn’t. I am still infatuated. When my family was near, I never cared for them. I took life for granted like an absolute truth. We all will live forever perpetually. Now I can’t stay a moment without them, sir.
Please… please give me a chance. Just two days more.”
Citragupta was a kind-hearted emissary of God. His heart was melting. He further enquired, “I find it strange, Budhu, that even if I manage to send you for two days, will you not be crying more after returning from two days’ trip to earth? That’s “Maya”, Budhu! Life on earth is an illusion! When you live, you mortals think you will live for ever. In fact, fault is not yours. God made a damn rule of one-mortal one-death only. So you can’t experience death while alive. And when some naughty fellows try that through suicide, they just land up here or in the hell. By the way, any other wishes?”
“ No,sir. I want no more. I just want to be with my families. Just to say my last few words. Just to place my hand upon my son’s head for the last blessings. Just to put my last kisses on my wife’s quivering lips. Just to throw my body at the feet of my mum and cry. Just to be with my sisters for a while to remember the agonies and joys of the past; Just to get locked with me in my private room, and spending time with me for a while standing naked before the mirror - slowly tracing the arteries and the veins in my body with my calm fingers. Then the fingers will inch forward and reach for my heart. It’s pounding. Life is still there. Just to feel the life after death……”
A drop of tear was glistening in his eye. Chitragupta was in dilemma – should he put another entry into his suspence account silently.
“Any more wishes?”
“ Well,sir, if you permit…I have one more wish to fulfill. I threw a challenge to my rivals. I wanted to win in the end. I was sure to win. But now I cannot. But only go back and tell my boys to take up the baton where I have left. Please… please give me a chance. Just two days more.”
“My goodness! What kinda challenge you have left behind in earth?”
“I wanted to show them , my adversaries that what I swear to achieve I do achieve. But I am feeling sad that my family down there will have to bear the burnt of my untimely death. I guess sooner they ll be target of ridicule! That’s a last wish sir! ”
“Any more wishes?”
After a few moments of search into his memory lane, “ Well,sir, if you permit…I have just one more wish. I had a target of making fortune. Had I got a few more years, could have reached the bull’s eye. But, now it’s no more possible. But perhaps I will be able to convey to my children so that they continue to generate money the same way so successfully I did. I need to tell them the tricks of the trade… That’s the last wish sir! Please… please give me a chance. Just two days more. ”
“Are you sure, that covers all your wishes?”
Budhu noticed Chitragupta had become restless, as if he was experiencing some new phenomena of existence. Perhaps he had never been to earth and used to its enchanting charm. Would he give him a chance once for all!
After a small pause Chitragupta whispered ,“Yes, you may be allowed to travel to earth for just two more days,Budhu. But what would you give me in return”. Budhu immediately dropped two gold coins into Chitragupta’s deep pocket surreptuously.
“OKAY BUDHU GO BACK TO EARTH.” The record keeper of heaven granted his wish. HOORRRAH!!! Budhu was dancing in heaven with joy. Suddenly something happened and he fell down with a bleeding foot and started to cry in pain. He heard some continuous knocking sound, coming from a distance….Thak…Thak…Thak
*****
There was some constant tapping in the door. Budhu woke up in his bed. Was he alive or dead ? He was not sure, did he travel to heaven and came back to earth on a fresh lease of life! He pinched his skin. Yes, it was paining. Means he was not dead! Hoorah !!Looked over to the bed. Yes, his wife was snoring in deep sleep. Next room , his son too was lying clasping a pillow in his arms. Through his nose air was flowing. The tapping in the door had not stopped. Budhu jumped from his bed and reached for the main door.
“Good morning Sir! Here is your milk.”
Budhu smiled and said “Thank You. Just two more days only!”
Milkman was puzzled –“ what sir ?”
“Oh sorry ! nothing” and smiled at the milkman as never before.
Then, closing the door, Budhu broke into a great laughter of relief. Goodbye Chitragupta ! He was slowly getting out of the traumatic dream. Just two hours of dream and he felt those surround so precious to him. It was an eye-opener. Who knows is it possible to roll the soul out of human body to travel to heaven and come back! Morning rays were peeping through the window. He went to the balcony and rested in the arm-chair, closed his eyes to say “Oh Earth! You look so wonderful!I missed you for just two hours”
Budhu murmured, Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you.
He had a terrible dream to warn about his remaining duties on earth. Its not two hours, not even two days. Who can dictate on Time. Time is born free., would remain free forever.Budhu's mind drifted into super conscious, Oh So long it was when Time knocked my door to take me out on a journey, then life was just blossoming …Amiba began Her solo journey on the darkest deepest water body of earth. Time used to narrate how thrilling was it to look at earth with ceaseless rain and endless raptures , was life simpler then with not enough intelligence for spare…Time was witness to see the sun shooting out of the nuptial of galaxies where colour was taking shape, beauty was getting new icons, life was floating like dead cells. Asteroids shooting in across the universe when Time was shaping. Oh Chitragupta! Manager of Life and Accountant of Death! I would really wish to shake hands with Time...But not alone, but with my companion and guide holding my hand
[This post is written as a part of Surf Excel Matic #GetSmart Contest at Indiblogger, in the process of figuring out an answer to their question "If you had two extra hours in a day, how would you spend it?"]
copyright@Gm
It was Money that brought the curtain down on the primitive barter systems of commodity exchange. In ancient times, each empire of repute began releasing metal coins stamped with the emplem of emperor. Was there any control on how many coins should be minted and be issued to the people of the state? As it seems, in early days, the coins were like a token - a permit to buy any goods of choice and were issued by the ruler when goods were bought from the people. And men had to accept the token because the ruler was powerful and despite the habit of bartering, the usage of coin remained as a tradition and it indicated a binding on the part of the ruler’s family to recognise certain debt to the person who owns that coin. Now who decided the value of coin? A diamond to a monkey is of no value. These coins' metals ranged from Silver, Bronze to Gold. It is the rule of economy that the scarcity and utility of the metal determines the value of the metal and of the coin. There was a time, when metal had no immediate relevance than using it for preparing weapons – so metal stood for safety. Those who had the metals, they felt more secured by making a weapon out of it – or perhaps sharpening the tip of the weapon with a metal plate. But with passage of time, people also began to enjoy creativity and began to wear these metals as a sysmbol of pride on their body and thus ornaments were born. That gave fillip to the demand for the hard metals – possessing metals became a sysmbol of pride and began to be counted as a part of wealth along with the catlestock and other perishable and non-perishable items of human use. That is the background story of how coins minted by the ruler began to be accepted as a item of undisputed wealth.In the beginning, the people continue to barter with other people and coin traded only with the ruler who used to buy his vaste empire’s needs by issuing coins. Later, with the popularity of the coins, people began to transact partly barter and partly with coins. The diffeences were settled with coins when there were hardly any commune or family that do not possess any coin.Later, all the purchasable items began to be rated in terms of number of coins of gold or silver or of bronze. That set the pace for the system of pricing and money based economy as it was easier to carry coins than to carry other heavy items. The same logic that pushes the plastic money became the guiding factor influencing the money economy.But, was it known, how many coins needed to be minted by the ruler? The ruler’s wealth decided the volume of coins. Suppose, had the ruler issued less coins, that would not be embarassing, but issuing more would put the ruler in debt – as against each coin he had to offer some goods or service of equal value! When he issues more and cannot honour the coin presented by any man, implies disrespect for the king. That is what we call bankrupsy today. So, some wisdom of coin issuance dawned upon the rulers, that coins cannot be issued more than the wealth that ruler owns. Now, who will control these complicated matters of wealth valuation of a ruler spread over a vast land. So, Ruler put an intelligent man in his chamber who would keep records of his wealth and the records of coin minting and issuance to the people.So the duty of Accountant was born. Ruler now became free from the nitty-gritty of Coin management. In the meantime, a change also took place in the ruler’s estate. Many products of common usage began to be produced or mined in large scale by the people and often Ruler’s requirement of those items surpassed what had been directed as Tax Collection. Necessity is the mother of invention. The ruler’s intelligent Accountant sugested that the ruler can keep a completely separate account of coins procured from the market through ruler’s selling of any goods or services and a separate record of collection of taxes in the form of coins.That was a defining moment in the monetary history of mankind – when the minted money management and ruler’s wealth management were consciously disintegrated to ensure better control over the money and the emergence of governing state and its financing yardsticks.
