Religion - The Second Decade..!

Religion - The Second Decade !

Prayer time is a time when all other thoughts come to mind! Of all other times, when one has nothing to think, no thoughts come to mind whatsoever.  Come prayer time, take a prayer book in hand, there is a line of thoughts ready and arranged from putting flowers in the flower vase, watering the flowers, giving manure to the plants, cleaning the walk way to the front verandha steps, changing a light bulb near the Jesus photo etc. etc.

It is strange how all these thoughts come all at once !  I pull back my mind as these are unwanted thoughts and try to concentrate on the prayer which has by now jumped into the second decade of ‘Joy’  That is, ‘The Visitation’.   I always, get the second decade to lead as I may be many a time, dreaming in my thoughts during the first decade which would have passed by then.  This again carry me to the times,  St. Mary as a young woman walked fast to reach her aunt who was announced to be bearing a child!  Mary in her simplicity started off to visit her to help her in her time of need.  Now, is the turn.  How many of my own would do this. All my near and dear, especially my very near sisters and nieces who are in these predicaments go through my mind, while I am fast covering the saying of the decade, repeating Hail Mary after Hail Mary!

At that point I feel a bid dejected!  I am making a fervent praise and a fervent request to Hail Mary every time and all these while, I have not recorded them in my mind.  As my mind is busy thinking of the activity part involved in the second decade of joy.  In my part of the world, these days, mostly people enquire of the happy event by phone or when they meet at church.  Some go and see them, but no serving or helping etc., mind you!  The one visited, if good natured, is supposed to serve the visitor and talk to them politely which is custom, if some one visited.  Here too, there are better natured people, who instead of visiting send 123 greetings, GIFs or a whatsapp message and a smiley! Done, the whole thing is done! And we continue with the ‘Hail Mary’ as many number of times as required.

Next day is the toughest in this regard. That is the second decade of ‘Sorrow’.  In the sorrowful second decade, we have the most painful part of ‘Scourging at the Pillar’.  Jesus is purportedly tied or bound to a pillar, or bound by leather belts on to a beam and scourged or whipped with the most cruel whips fitted with splinters of stones and metals!  Pain at each whip is unimaginable and the initial thoughts are about the horrific situation Jesus underwent and I repeat with ease the ‘Hail Mary’ interspersed with an occasional ‘Our Father’.  The thoughts again carry me off to the people who trouble and main to other people.  I equate them to the Roman soldiers who troubled and pained Jesus about whom he said ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they are doing’.

The third day brings a little happiness in that Jesus Ascension is being remembered and here no one can touch him, if not expressly allowed by him.  The canvas coming to mind is some what lime the Microsoft page of a vast green field or a lawn with blue sky full of white clouds among which Jesus is going up and up with that benign look on his face, down cast, looking at his children on this earth!  One is sure, Jesus will go up and beyond to a world where one seldom know whether there is time and space. 

The matter ended with these three decades in my childhood and youth-hood, but any more! When, if I remember correctly, a new  Pope called Pope John Paul II came, he added a new set of decades called the ‘Decades of Light’  As we would have it, now the fourth day, we have the ‘Wedding at Cana’, the most joyful occasion we come across in the whole decades!  Here a Wedding is in progress and in between, the precious wine kept for the guests finishes abruptly and there is commotion or hushed whispers among the guest and Mary takes notice of the same!  Again, it is St. Mary who takes a lead in helping out the family.  She can’t remain as a spectator in such a situation. As all heroes she plunges into the situation head long and (perhaps, after appeasing the distressed family) walks up to Jesus and tells him “They have no wine”.  Jesus, ( a bit more like us in these days) initially tells that is none of their business!  This ‘none of my business’, none of your business, none of his business or none of her business, we hear a lot of times these days.  In those olden days when something happened around them, they thought it is their business too, and hence the request and suggestion for more wine!  What ever was to be done, was to be done then and there and at the Mother’s request, the son Jesus provides wine to the guests!  All those who like to take a peg in the evening and those who have a love for it (you know what I mean!) love this decade and incident, through and through! 

In all other areas one is advised to avoid all kind of drinks, alcohol and beverages but in this one occasion Lord Jesus is providing it abundantly to those who had assembled and saves the situation as it was precious to them.  My mind have started running wild with these simple thoughts while I am reciting my ‘Hail Marys’ and the praises and the requests!   I am stopping ! I cannot go on thinking wild like this during prayer. Let me concentrate on the pious part of it and practise it!