Someone Else's Garden (53 page)

Lakshmi/Lakshmi Mata:
Indian goddess of wealth; a manifestation of Devi.

Lassi:
a shake made with yogurt, water and spices or sugar.

Maharashtran:
person from Maharashtra.

Mahavir:
Indian sage and ascetic, contemporary of Buddha, who is the founder of the Jain faith.

Maheshvari Mata:
a manifestation of Devi. She is the compassionate supreme ruler.

Mangalsutra:
a necklace of black beads worn by brides as a visible sign of marriage.

Mantra:
a sacred verbal arrangement repeated in prayer, meditation, or incantation to bring one closer to achieving enlightenment.

Masi:
literally ‘mother’s sister’, a respectful way of addressing a woman older than you.

Masterji:
a respectful way of addressing a wise or knowledgeable man.

Mata/Mataji:
literally ‘mother’, a respectful way of addressing a woman who could be your mother’s age.

Mauwa fruit:
almond-sized fruit of a large deciduous tree.

Maya:
literally ‘illusion’; the principal concept which manifests and governs the play of duality on the stage of the phenomenal universe. Mela: fair.

Memsahib:
mistress of the house.

Meri jaan:
literally ‘my life’, a strong term of endearment.

Milkcake:
solid block of reduced milk and sugar.

Mirrorwork:
kind of embellishment created with fragments of mica or mirrors and embroidery.

Motor rickshaw:
three-wheeled motor scooter that can carry two or three passengers.

Murdabad:
literally ‘death to’.

Namaste:
Indian salutation, often accompanied by folded hands, acknowledging the divinity within the person being greeted.

Nani:
maternal grandmother.

Neem:
large tree of the mahogany family.

Netaji:
leader, role-model.

Nizammudin Chisti:
a famous Sufi saint of the Chisti order.

Ohm:
the first divine cosmic sound, a very sacred symbol for Hindus.

Paan:
see betel-leaf.

Pallav:
loose end of the sari which is slung over the shoulder and often used to cover the head.

Panchayat:
assembly of wise and respected village elders.

Parandis:
hair extensions made of silk.

Paraya:
literally ‘the other’; outsider; not of the family.

Parryware:
brand name of a leading commode manufacturer.

Petromax:
brand of kerosene lamp.

Phenol:
a strong-smelling cleaning fluid, also known as carbolic.

Policewalas:
another term for police force.

Pooja:
prayer.

Postmanji:
a respectful way of addressing the postman.

Pukka:
strong, made of brick.

Pundit:
priest.

Puris/Puri bhaji:
fried unleavened wholewheat bread served with a spicy vegetable preparation.

Pyaasa
:
1957 blockbuster Indian film starring Guru Dutt.

Rajasthan nuclear weapon tests:
in May 1998, India conducted five controversial underground nuclear tests in Rajasthan.

Rakhale:
kept woman; whore.

Rangoli:
literally ‘coloured rows’; auspicious painting done with coloured powders especially on festival days.

Ravana:
king of Lanka and chief villain of the Ramayana epic. Red Bazaar: red-light district.

Rickshaw:
three-wheeled bicycle taxi.

Rudali:
literally ‘crier’; professional mourner.

Sadhus:
holy men committed to austerity and seclusion.

Sahib/Sahibji:
respectful way of addressing a man of station.

Salwar-kurta:
Punjabi dress consisting of pants and a tunic worn by both men and women.

Samsara:
bondage to the endless cycle of life and death.

Sardar:
head; chief; chieftain.

Shakuntala:
the most beautiful of all apsaras.

Shiva:
Hindu god of the holy trinity; god of dance, destruction and creation.

Sikh/Sikhanni:
man/woman of the Sikh faith.

Sindhoor:
red dust worn in parted hair as a visible sign of marriage.

Sudama:
childhood friend of Krishna.

Sudras:
the lowest caste, given undesirable tasks such as cleaning toilets.

Swaha:
the offering of a gift or sacrifice to a deity, usually uttered when feeding the ritual fire with sacred offerings.

Swastika:
meaning pure, auspicious. It is a sacred symbol of an equilateral, usually right-facing, cross with its arms bent at right angles.

Tamarind:
sticky, extremely sour fruit from a tree of the same name. Widely used in Indian cooking.

Thali:
tin plate.

Three-headed lion:
The Indian national emblem adapted from the capital of iron pillars erected by pacifist Emperor Ashok (269– 232 BC).The national emblem is an adaptation from the Lion Capital seal of Ashoka. In the original there are four lions, standing back to back, mounted on lotus, carrying reliefs of an elephant, a galloping horse, a bull and a lion separated by intervening wheels of Dharma Chakras. In the state emblem, adopted by the Government of India in 1950, only three lions are visible, the fourth being hidden from view.

Tilak:
dot between the eyebrows of a man, placed as a blessing.

Tonga:
horse-drawn cart.

Tongawala:
driver of a horse-drawn cart.

Tulsi:
sacred basil.

Turmeric:
yellow rhizome commonly used as a spice in Indian cooking.

Uffo:
mildly chiding as a mother might a young child. Somewhat equivalent to ‘Come on now, don’t be that way.’

Vaishnavi Mata:
a manifestation of Devi. Her energy is that of sustenance, preservation, perfection and performance.

Varahi Mata:
a manifestation of Devi. She is all consuming. Creation is digested by her to make the universe play in harmony.

Veda Asi:
literally ‘containing the Vedas’; vessel of all cosmic knowledge.

Vedas:
Literally ‘wisdom’; sacred Hindu texts written in ancient Sanskrit, the Vedas consist of four canonical sacred texts composed four thousand years ago, which contain sacred hymns and can be considered the technical manuals of Hindu philosophy. They cover diverse subjects including ritual, spirituality, mantras, warfare, performing arts and medicine. The Vedas were preserved and passed down through faithful recitation.

Vishnu:
one of the three gods in the Hindu Trinity; Vishnu is the Preserver, the supreme being who pervades all time and space.

Vrindavan:
a town in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, North India. It is the site of an ancient forest where Lord Krishna spent his childhood.

Vyasia:
working class; the second level in the Indian caste system.

Yamraj:
collector of the dead, commonly depicted riding a bull.

Yogi:
someone who practices a disciplined spiritual doctrine.

Zamindar/zamindari:
land owner/land ownership.

Zindabad:
literally ‘Long live’.

Sources:

Bhagavad Gita
text and translation by Annie Besant

Facets of Chandi-Nava Durga
by Chaman Lal Raina

Behind The Scenes

‘SOMETHING SPLENDID’
A Word from the Author

‘Good books, like good friends, are few and chosen; the more select, the more enjoyable.’

LOUISA MAY ALCOTT

‘I want to do something splendid . . . Something heroic or wonderful that won’t be forgotten after I’m dead . . . I think I shall write books.’ So said Louisa May Alcott on why she wanted to write. And yet the precise nature of the creative process is a mysterious one. What is it that inspires authors to put pen to paper: curiosity, sympathy, passion, obsession? In her own words, Dipika Rai reveals what inspired her to write
Someone Else’s Garden
. . .

As children we travelled with my parents all through India in a trusty Ambassador car with a bedroll on the roof and boiled water in a sturdy steel thermos. Each time we reached our destination I collected a story. As I grew older, I realised that I was born into an extraordinary country where hundreds of inspiring and interesting things, worthy of recounting, took place on a daily basis. The eternal stories of the milkman, the ayah, the dhobi, of the neighbour, the landlord and the dacoit were all vignettes that kept me company throughout my life. I knew a time would come when I would have to explain to my children why India is the way it is. So, armed with enough material for several books, I started out to tell a good story and record my impressions of India.

On a deeper level, I also used
Someone Else’s Garden
as a vehicle to examine Indian philosophy and values without compromising the authenticity of the day-to-day cruelty and hardship of living in the country. I chose to write a redemptive love story, because I could thoroughly explore the tension between all pairs of opposites – good and evil, love and hate, tradition and modernity, deification and rejection – in this context. I wanted to write a story that would impart a message of social consciousness and the need for people to change their attitudes regarding girls and women in India and elsewhere in the world, because I believe that cultures who do not honour their women are doomed to perish a slow and indi-gent death.

By the time
Someone Else’s Garden
was completed, I realised something extraordinary: sharing Mamta’s journey all these years had led to my own emotional and spiritual awakening. I had somehow changed in the telling of her story. And I wished the same for my readers.

It is my hope that
Someone Else’s Garden
will inspire a few people, question a few rules, and change a few beliefs.

‘LEARN THE TRUTH’
Things to Think About

‘Do the things you know, and you shall learn the truth you need to know.’

LOUISA MAY ALCOTT

From Socrates to the salons of pre-Revolutionary France, the great minds of every age have debated the merits of literary offerings alongside questions of politics, social order and morality. Whether you love a book or loathe it, one of the pleasures of reading is the discussion books regularly inspire. Below are a few suggestions for topics of discussion about
Someone Else’s Garden
. . .

•
Someone Else’s Garden
is an epic Indian novel. Which genres do you think it falls under and why?

• How has Lokend’s character contributed to your understanding of Indian philosophy?

• Lata Bai and Mamta: two generations of Indian women. What did you know about the position of women in rural Indian society before reading
Someone Else’s Garden?
In what ways has this book shaped your understanding of their experience?

• In chapter two, Singh Sahib muses to his late wife: ‘One of our sons gives away our lands while the other never tires of acquiring more. And they both do it in the name of honour!
’
What is your view on the relationship between the two brothers? And what do you think about the wider conflict alluded to here, between love and land?

• ‘The slap damages her eardrum and sends her spinning to the other end of the hut. The blow takes her by complete surprise . . . Mamta runs her tongue along the inside of her mouth, and spits out a piece of broken tooth. Her eyelid is torn.’ After she marries, Mamta is treated savagely by her husband. How successfully do you think the author portrays Mamta’s abuse, and her reaction to it?

• ‘Her first meeting had given her a false sense of security. But Lata Bai is the quintessential rural woman. As an individual she may be able to stand behind her daughter, but as a member of her ilk she can’t.’ Does the author successfully explain the cycle of violence against women that is sometimes sustained and reinforced by their own mothers, through Lata Bai’s rejection of Mamta and her lover Lokend?

• Love, relationships, identity and redemption are all central themes of
Someone Else’s Garden
. In what ways do you think these are tested as the novel progresses? Are there any other themes that in your view lie at the heart of this book?

• How significant is the character of Prem? What do you think he brings to the novel?

• What do you think the future holds for Rani?

• The phrase ‘someone else’s garden’ appears throughout the book. What, for you, does this title symbolise and do you think it is a powerful one?