To,
My beloved bhakt,
Finally, you have made it. You might think that you have won a war, bhakt, but let me remind you of the actual essence of what you have done. You have built a temple of which you are really proud and are planning to welcome me on January 22, 2024. But is this it? Can you please remind me when I asked you to build a temple for me and welcome me with slogans like “Jai Shree Ram” or “Ram Mere Ram”?
Well, okay, you made the temple; go ahead and fulfill your wish to welcome me in Ayodhya. But before that, promise me that you will welcome me only after cleaning your house, which is the actual temple for you to find shelter and sleep peacefully, while there are others like you who don’t even have a shed but only footpaths and roads to sleep on, living in fear of being hit by a car.
Promise me that you will not force your parents to book your ticket at any cost to Ayodhya, and if they cannot afford it, then you will not fight with them or abuse them. I have witnessed that you, my dear bhakts, would worship me but do not respect the real gods, who are none other than your parents.
And yes, my dear bhakt, putting my photograph on your status is not what I wanted from you. Respecting and helping people of your own race who are helpless, homeless, and dying of hunger is what I wanted, but unfortunately, you have failed to do so. Instead of establishing a state of peace and honor, you chose to spread hate against other humans who may not be like you, may not practice your culture, may not eat the food you eat, or maybe they are untouchable to you.
Let me remind you, bhakt, that there are millions of Indians considered untouchables just because they have been labeled with an alien identity based on class and castes. What is caste to you, bhakt? A matter of pride? Just because you have a so-called upper identity, does that make your physicality stronger or bolder?
Or maybe you think it gives you a license to discriminate and exploit the poor and helpless who are literally of your own race. Across India, untouchability was practiced among 52 per cent of Brahmins, 33 per cent of Other Backward Classes, and 24 per cent of non-Brahmin forward castes. Untouchability was also practiced by people of minority religions – 23 per cent of Sikhs, 18 per cent of Muslims, and 5 per cent of Christians.
Forget about the religions mentioned above; you call yourself a Sanatana devotee but still won’t let go of this illness of differences in your mind. One more thing to add, dear bhakt, there are races that kill the bhakti of others by proving themselves as true devotees; you have to stop them.
You can do this by simply improving yourself first. If you go to Ram Mandir, just roam around the streets for a while, explore the city, and you will find some helpless, poor, forcibly naked, and hungry people. Wipe their tears off and ensure your habits do not make them cry again.
My dear bhakt, I am giving you a simple mantra to decide the fate of yours and your loved ones. Make sure you follow this: “Before taking any step, ask yourself a question while imagining the face of the most poor and helpless person you have ever seen. Will what I am going to do now make this poor person’s life better? Will this poor person get a better standard of living because of my actions? If yes, then go ahead; if no, then change your decision.”
Lastly, my dear bhakt, I just want to say that no matter wherever you want to find me, I am where I should be: in your heart and mind. Make sure you use it wisely.
Featured image by Urjita Bhardwaj, ThePrint