Are you afraid of the Rains?
Rains are always a fascination. It kindles the mild emotions, makes one composed, and allows the imagination to fly. It has been the door to creativity for the poets and romantic people. What a fun to get drenched in the rain ! Children love splashing the rain water among themselves in the play mood. Even though we have been hearing the popular rhyme "Rain Rain go away....", nobody wants the rain to go away or miss it. Clattering sound of the rain drops relaxes our tense mind. Ask a group of people to close their eyes and ask them to tap the right hand fingers into the left palm increasing each finger periodically. You can hear the rain drops increasing slowly, reach the pinnacle and then recedes. Such is the soothing power of rain that even an artificial sound is fascinating. Many romantic Indian film songs are woven around rains. The hero and heroin get drenched in the rain and glide around singing the beautiful song "Rimjim pani barsat..." Famous Ghazal song "Ayiye barishom ka mausam hai, In dinom chahatom ha mausam hai...." is always elixir to the ears. It is told in Mahabhratha that King Lomapadha asks Sage Rishyasringa to invoke rain through Yaga and drench the parched fields and fill the dried up wells and ponds so that the country prospers. It is mentioned that a famous film director once used the opportunity of a cyclone in Tamil Nadu to picturize his film so that it gets a natural tinge. Even tourism is promoted during rainy seasons as Monsoon Package
Rain means different things to different people.
For children it is an opportunity to play in the mud.
For the farmers, it is the preparatory process for cultivation.
For lovers it is time for romance.
For mothers it is worry time that the children will get cold and fall sick
For the lazy ones it is time for extended sleep
For poets and writers it is the time to sit in an arm chair and contemplate
For a street vendor it is an opportunity lost
For umbrella manufactures it is the time for marketing (In Kerala famous umbrella manufacturing units use the Monsoon Season to bring out innovations in umbrella designs)
For teanagers it is the time to chat with friends in a coffee shop.
Fair enough. We are all fascinated to Rain.
Was there any moment you were afraid of rains except in the childhood days when there was thunderstorm with lightning and huge noise ! In those days our Grandma used to make us chant Arjuna Manthra to ward off fear. She used to serve us steaming Vatha Kozhambu Rice with wafers in that thick Monsoon period !!! Slurp. Still the taste lingers on in our palates.
Yes this was the time when the entire population of the small state of Kerala really got jittery of the Rain.
There was incessant rains for almost 15 days. The downpours were frightening. Water started building up earlier as small pools and later as big devastators. The once dried rivers were frighteningly flowing breaching the Banks. There was this threat of flood and all the reservoirs were opened fully with water gushing out and flooding many areas. People started moving to safer places abandoning the life long savings. Many lost their lives. Innumerable agencies started rescue operations. Rehabilitation camps were set up and people waited with agony in these camps for the rain to get abated. Assets worth crores and crores of rupees were destroyed. Life of a lot of people remained a big question mark staring at their future. Everything has to start afresh with new build up. Slowly life started limping back to normalcy and it has to.
Earlier when clouds gathered in the sky people used to feel happy. Now when they see a rain cloud the fear creeps back to their mind with a prayer in the lips
no not again...
I started asking myself "Are tou afraid of Rains.....???"
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