Of Titles & Respect
Sir. Madam. Chattrapati. Maharaj. Mahatma.
In the ancient period, all kinds of titles were anointed to
certain brave and prestigious people to ascertain their bravery and prestige. What
was supposed to be a sign of respect though turned out to be an instrument of oppression,
of divide, which is why they were abolished.
I’d like to point out the keywords in the above paragraph – 1.
Ancient period 2. Instrument of oppression, divide 3. Abolished.
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I am what you’d call a trekker, because I have trekked my
way through many of the forts of Maharashtra. This love for fortresses was
built in me in 4th standard, because my entire History syllabus was
built around the revered king Shivaji Bhosale, for whom these monuments were
home. This is the ruler I truly admire, and I have tried to read everything
about him I could find. Leadership for the sake of people’s welfare always intrigued
me, and here was a man, a man made of blood and flesh and bones and not a figment
of imagination or myths, who gave people something to believe in. When I go to
these forts, these homes built on high and difficult terrains, I try to breathe
the history in. The dilapidated structures feel sacred even in their moments of
ruin.
Though I usually prefer trekking alone, this one time I had
gone with my friends to this fort called Mahuli. Atop the fort, on an elevated
structure of stones, was a statue of Shivaji. I climbed for a better look, and
this friend of mine told me to first remove my shoes and then climb. It truly
baffled me. We humans have a tendency to elevate great people to the likeness
of Gods, and I respect your wishes if you feel that. Everyone has their own
ways of portraying faith, and in my faith, I don’t feel the need to remove my
shoes or add a suffix and a prefix before uttering his name, because then he
becomes a stranger to me. Someone I cannot reach. It’s weird, but it’s my belief,
and I don’t see it harming anybody, so it should be respected.
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A comedian’s video has been recently traveling the internet
wrapped in rage because she supposedly offended religious/cultural sentiments
of some by insulting the great king. When I had seen the video, I truly couldn’t
understand what the outrage was all about, I still don’t. But apparently, it was
offensive enough that she deserved receiving abuses, death, and rape threats.
If you truly knew anything about the king you proclaim to
love, under whose name you do the very things he tried to rid of, you’d know the
sheer stupidity of your unwarranted and unfounded rage. History has the
blessing to teach us to not commit the same mistakes again and again, but it
also has the curse of repeating itself, because hey, humans will only learn
that which suits their hypocrite propaganda. And don’t you know – if you don’t adhere
to what the majority believes in, even if it’s flawed and insensible, you’ll be
the one who’s abolished. Rationality and logic be damned.
So learn your etiquette again.
Sir. Madam. Chattrapati. Maharaj. Mahatma.
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