Quarentined

During the month of peak Indian summers, when it becomes almost unbearable to work, we want to turn ourselves off and take a break.

I am no expert on taking breaks, but do you know who is?

Our beloved god, Lord Jagannath

He waits every summer to enjoy his annual summer vacation. As the mercury starts reaching higher, he feels an urge to go outdoors and enjoy some fresh air. So he utilizes his preapproved leaves and ventures out of his home, the sanctum of the Jagannath Puri temple.

As god-loving humans, we are. We want our beloved to enjoy his time away from duty. We decide to bring the Lord into the temple courtyard and make arrangements for him to take a refreshingly cold shower. There is no bigger celebrity in India than the Lord, so any public appearance that he makes is nothing short of a festival. Thousands of devotees congregate to participate in the bathing ceremony; of course, taking a selfie here is not possible.

Our god is no ordinary person; he bathes in water more pure than the one that Virat Kohli drinks from a special well inside the temple premise called the golden well. And like the chefs of the 5-star hotels, whose mouths are covered while preparing the delicacy, the devotees who collect the water have to cover their mouths with clothes so that the water is not contaminated.

The special bathing mix is prepared for our rockstar with water collected in 108 pots, with priests sanctifying them with turmeric, whole rice, sandal, flowers, and perfume.

Standing in the sun throughout the day and also taking a bath with cold water takes its toll on his mortal body. As a result, he gets sick and catches a fever. But smart as he is, he understands the risk of COVID, so he knows to isolates himself in a sick room for treatment.

As he is sick, his body is not ready for the regular meals. The doctor prescribes him only fruits and water mixed with cheese, along with some herbal medicines. Other than his personal caretakers and royal physician, no one is allowed to enter his sick room. As a future guideline for quarantine, he spends 14 days in isolation, called the Anasara period.

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Now the big question is, if God is all-powerful, how can he fall sick? The answer to that lies in the principles of Hinduism. They, unlike other popular religions, treat god as the one close to themselves. God being absolute and solely powerful was never the idea it promoted.

The concept is very beautifully depicted in the story of Lord Jagannath falling sick. He himself, being a form of Lord Krishna, transcends sickness to enhance the love of his devotees. He gets sick to increase our longing for him. Who doesn't love care and attention, be it a human or God himself? He too has feelings and emotions, and he loves to reciprocate his feelings and emotions with us.

If you think deeply Lord Jagannath cannot not really fall sick. In fact, sickness cannot even touch him. But he allows himself to be sick because he loves to enjoy personal care like you and me. He does not want to be on the altar and bless us. But he wants us to love him and reciprocate with him like we do with our family members.

Here he wants to teach us an important life lesson. To take regular detox breaks to enjoy the love and care of our loved ones, and the absence of our loved ones helps us realize their value in our lives.

The lesson is simple, but the story around it helps us remember it better.

Afterall, it's all stories that we tell ourselves and others!