The long awaited Arti begins and the lamps are set afloat on the river. Santa is filled with spiritual fervor.
“Ah, Banta!”
“What a sight!”
“To think of the great Tapasya King Bhagirath undertook for a thousand years to bring Mother Ganga down from the heavens for the salvation of his ancestors… “
“His effort was monumental!”
Banta nods, his eyes reflecting the flickering lights.
“It was indeed, Santa.”
“A story of incredible determination.”
“But I sometimes wonder, what would Bhagirath think if he saw us today?”
“He would be proud!” Santa declares.
“To see that millions are still finding peace and salvation in the waters he brought to Earth.”
“He would be proud of the faith, yes,” Banta agrees.
“But I think he would also be heartbroken.”
“He would say, I undertook a thousand years of Tapasya to bring the pure Ganga here.”
“But you, my children, seem unwilling to undertake even a few hours of Tapasya to keep her pure.”
Santa looks taken aback. “What do you mean, Banta?”
“Bhagirath‘s Tapasya was for his time,” Banta explains.
“Our Tapasya, our modern Tapasya, for this age is different.”
“Our Tapasya is to stop treating our holy mother like a celestial dustbin.”
“Our Tapasya is to build sewage treatment plants in every city that touches her.”
“Our Tapasya is to stop throwing our plastic waste, our industrial chemicals, and our Puja materials into her waters.”
“Our Tapasya is to protect the forests at her source.”
He points to the line of plastic waste.
“We revere the story of Bhagirath, but we ignore its spirit.”
“The spirit was one of supreme effort for the sake of purity.”
“We celebrate the arrival of the goddess but disrespect her presence every single day.”
“We are asking her bacteriophage army to fight a war against a never-ending flood of filth.”
“Even the most divine army can eventually lose a battle against such overwhelming odds.”
A deep sense of shame washes over Santa as he looks at the garbage floating near the holy lamps.
“You are right, Banta,” he says quietly.
“We celebrate Bhagirath‘s effort, but we don’t make any effort ourselves.
“Our Shraddha has become lazy.”
“It is easy to take a dip and believe our sins are washed away, but it is hard to stop ourselves from sinning against the river itself.”
“That is the challenge, my friend,” Banta concludes.
“If we truly want Mother Ganga to continue giving salvation to our future generations, our new Dharma must be to protect her.”
“The greatest prayer we can offer her now is not just a Diya, but a promise – a promise to stop polluting her sacred waters.”
“That is the real Bhagirath Prayas needed today.”
संता – बंता की इस जुगलबन्दी से आज हमने क्या सीखा:-
- आस्था व कर्म में एकरूपता: माँ गंगा से जुड़ी धार्मिक आस्था के अनुरूप हमें गंगा के प्रवाह को प्रदूषण मुक्त बनाने के लिये तद्सम्बन्धित पर्यावरण संरक्षण सम्बन्धित कार्यो को प्राथमिकता के आधार पर करना चाहिये।
- प्रदूषण के दूरगामी प्रतिकूल प्रभाव: प्रदूषण के कारण गंगा की प्राकृतिक स्वतः शुद्ध होने वाली प्रणाली अवरुद्ध हो रही हैं। अतः जरूरी हो जाता हैं की हम यह सुनिश्चित करे कि किसी भी प्रकार का प्रदूषित जल, किसी भी स्थिति में गंगा में प्रवाहित न किया जाये।
- पर्यावरण सुरक्षा हमारा नैतिक उत्तरदायित्व: प्रदूषण रोकथाम महज पर्यावरण सुरक्षा से जुड़ा मसला नहीं हैं। सच कहे तो आने वाली पीढ़ियों के लिये अपनी प्राकृतिक व सांस्कृतिक धरोहर को बचाये रखना हमारा नैतिक व आध्यात्मिक उत्तरदायित्व हैं।
संता – बंता की यह जुगलबन्दी आपको कैसी लगी, कृपया हमें जरुर बताये
व
इस जुगलबन्दी को बेहतर बनाने के लिये अपने सुझाव अवश्य दें।
हमें हमेशा की तरह आपके सुझावों, प्रतिक्रियाओं व कटाक्षो का बेसब्री से इंतजार रहता हैं और सच मानिये इसी के आधार पर हम अपने आप में, अपनी सोच व रचनात्मकता में सुधार करने को प्रेरित होते हैं।
सो अच्छा – बुरा जैसा आपको महसूस हुवा हो, कमेंट जरुर करते रहें।
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