“A small lamp is enough to remove the darkness of ages”. One day I was travelling by train. Normally, the passengers in AC coaches do not converse with one another. During their journey, they either watch a movie on their laptops, lie down and listen to songs, or read a book. Perhaps, they find talking to each other indecent. But that day, by the time I boarded, there was an interesting discussion going on among those sitting there. May be they were friends.
One person was defending astrology while the other was criticizing it. As I boarded the train in the middle, I sat quietly in my seat, looking out of the window and listening to their conversation. The debate went on for a long time. Both were well educated.
I could tell that the person supporting had few prior experiences, due to which he believed in astrology. The person criticizing had no experience. He argued that astrology was a hoax because science refuses to admit it. Their arguments were about how planets work on us, even though they are millions of miles away from the Earth, and so on.
Even though they argued for a long time, they couldn’t come to any conclusion. I happened to notice some of the lines on the critic’s palm, while he was talking and waving his hands. After examining again, one or two times and making sure, I asked, “Sorry for interrupting your conversation, but may I ask you a question?”
“Sure” they said.
“As a kid, you grew up away from your home, didn't you?” I asked the astrology critic.
He looked stunned!
“Do you know me?” he asked.
“Of course I know you. But I don’t know you the way you suppose”, I said.
“Yes, I studied in a hostel as a kid” he said.
“If you don’t mind, may I ask you something else?” I said.
“Sure, tell me” he said.
“Did your parents breakup after conflicts? Tell me only if you don’t mind" I said. There was pain in his face.
“Yes, my dad left my mom. She stayed in a village at my grandparent’s home and died”, he said sadly.
I was saddened to have reminded him of his tragic past, but I couldn’t help. Generally, there are painful things in the lives of those who make such criticisms. They grieve that sciences like astrology never came to their rescue. This feeling of hurt, provokes them to criticize..
“Do you believe in astrology now?” I asked him with a smile.
He was astonished and did not speak for a long time.
“How is it possible?” he asked.
I said, “It is possible. You have seen it. Haven’t you?”
He nodded his head and asked, “Can you tell me something more?”
I told him, “I can, but I don’t want to”.
Their argument ended there and both of them started a conversation with me. Their attempt was to find out how I predicted the two events. A discussion on astrology and mysticism followed.
After an hour’s journey, the three of us became friends. Meanwhile, the train reached my destination.
“Thank you so much for convincing my friend”, said the second person. ”We will cherish this memorable day forever”, said the critic. They took my phone number and said good bye when the train reached Guntur station.
A small lamp is enough to remove the darkness of ages.
All rights reserved. This article has been translated by Mahathi T which was originally posted in teluguyogi.net on October 26, 2010. The content or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher.