Tuesday, January 25, 2005
Atoning For Sins
Today is Thaipusam, a day of consecration to the Hindu deity, Lord Murugan, sometimes also called Lord Subramaniam. A feature of the festival is the carrying of a kavadi, a frame decorated with colored papers, tinsels, fresh flowers, and fruits as a form penance.
The Kavadi-bearer observes strict celibacy. Only pure, Sattwic food is taken; he abstains from all sorts of intoxicating drinks and drugs. He thinks of God all the time. Many of the Kavadi-bearers impose various forms of self-torture. Some pass a sharp little spear through their tongue, which is made to protrude out of the mouth. Others may pass a spear through the cheek. This sort of piercing is done in other parts of the body also. The bearer does not shave; he grows a beard. He eats only once a day. The spear pierced through his tongue or cheek reminds him of the Lord constantly. It also prevents him from speaking. It gives him great power of endurance.
On Thaipusam, some keen devotees undertake to walk barefoot from home to one of the shrines of Lord Subramanya, bearing the Kavadi all the way and collecting materials for the offering. They have to walk a hundred miles sometimes!
The Kavadi-bearers remind me of Oedipus. He blinds himself after knowing the truth. He could have killed himself but he does not. He wants to suffer because he wants to atone for his sins. He has sinned against his parents by committing patricide and incest. As he says, “I have sinned against them both / So vilely that I could not make my peace / by strangling my own life.”
Oedipus wants to live his life by continuing to feel the suffering, so he gouges out both his eyes. It is a terrible sight but this is a mere physical suffering compared to the torture of his mind.
I admire Oedipus because when he finds out his has committed the sins, he does not try to defend his actions. In fact he takes on full responsibility by deciding to punish himself. He inflicts upon himself a punishment in many ways worse than a death, to atone for his unforgiven sins. At the end of the play, the only thing he has left is his human dignity.
Oedipus is a hero just like the Kavadi-bearers. They suffer by the mortification of flesh so that their sins are cleansed and forgiven.
The Kavadi-bearer observes strict celibacy. Only pure, Sattwic food is taken; he abstains from all sorts of intoxicating drinks and drugs. He thinks of God all the time. Many of the Kavadi-bearers impose various forms of self-torture. Some pass a sharp little spear through their tongue, which is made to protrude out of the mouth. Others may pass a spear through the cheek. This sort of piercing is done in other parts of the body also. The bearer does not shave; he grows a beard. He eats only once a day. The spear pierced through his tongue or cheek reminds him of the Lord constantly. It also prevents him from speaking. It gives him great power of endurance.
On Thaipusam, some keen devotees undertake to walk barefoot from home to one of the shrines of Lord Subramanya, bearing the Kavadi all the way and collecting materials for the offering. They have to walk a hundred miles sometimes!
The Kavadi-bearers remind me of Oedipus. He blinds himself after knowing the truth. He could have killed himself but he does not. He wants to suffer because he wants to atone for his sins. He has sinned against his parents by committing patricide and incest. As he says, “I have sinned against them both / So vilely that I could not make my peace / by strangling my own life.”
Oedipus wants to live his life by continuing to feel the suffering, so he gouges out both his eyes. It is a terrible sight but this is a mere physical suffering compared to the torture of his mind.
I admire Oedipus because when he finds out his has committed the sins, he does not try to defend his actions. In fact he takes on full responsibility by deciding to punish himself. He inflicts upon himself a punishment in many ways worse than a death, to atone for his unforgiven sins. At the end of the play, the only thing he has left is his human dignity.
Oedipus is a hero just like the Kavadi-bearers. They suffer by the mortification of flesh so that their sins are cleansed and forgiven.
# posted by Dr. Yee Bee Choo @ 5:45 PM 
