Readers' Forum
“Retarded customs”
I read Delna Baliwala’s letter "Retarded customs” (Readers’ Forum, Parsiana, July 21, 2012) and was happy that a 25-year-old has bothered to put down her thoughts and feelings on paper. If all the young people in our community had such enthusiasm, the community will have a future. I feel — perhaps falsely — that our youth are rather indifferent to community issues and religious matters.
I have a small correction to suggest to this young lady. When she says, "After knowing and understanding all this, I certainly would not want to belong to this religion,” I am sure what she means is this community, and not religion.
Zoroastrianism is a very highly rational philosophy, a way of life. Anyone can discover this on reading the Gathas (in about 238 stanzas) — the only scripture which has come directly from the Prophet.
We need to understand that there is a difference between religiosity and religion. Religiosity means rituals and ceremonies. Religion is the path we follow in everyday life, living by the credo of good thoughts, good words and good deeds. Our priests, whom I like to call "ceremony masters,” generally try to pass off religiosity as religion.
Happy as I was to read Baliwala’s outpourings, I was quite amused to read Homi Ranina’s response. He suggests that she should meet him and come "with an open mind!” Ha, Ha. You must be joking, Mr Ranina. The only people I have met in life with closed minds are orthodox people like you! And why should anyone come to meet you to discuss such matters? Why don’t you respond point by point to her letter in Parsiana for the benefit of the entire community?
KERSEE KABRAJI
Poona
kerseekabraji@gmail.com
I have carefully noted Delna Baliwala’s comments regarding our dwindling community in her letter "Retarded customs” (Readers’ Forum, Parsiana, July 21, 2012). I wish to respond as I genuinely feel sorry that a young, educated, ambitious lady from our community has been unfortunately driven to belittle our folk and to push aside our basically good values, attitudes, customs and cultural beliefs.
Every community has prescribed norms which may not be acceptable to all, but one needs to reflect after seeing the bigger picture. I wish to relate here an episode which occurred over 20 years ago when I was a resident in a medical school hospital in London. It is something I have never been able to forget.
A well known practice among members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, a Christian sect, is not to interfere with nature when an illness occurs. They do not seek medical or surgical help as their belief is "to suffer, as one is destined.”
A woman who was bleeding considerably in late pregnancy was admitted to a hospital in London by her neighbors while her husband was away, working in Wales. The consultants needed to do a Cesarean section and transfuse two units of blood. After this was done both the mother and baby were doing well. When the intravenous drip was discontinued on the third day, the woman committed suicide by jumping out of the hospital window, leaving behind her newborn infant and a note stating that she had sinned by accepting blood!
I earnestly request members of our young generation, of whom I am truly proud, and with whom my profession allows me to mingle, not to make hasty, irrevocable decisions which they may regret in later life.
When one gets married to a partner from another community and culture, it is inevitable that the grown-up offspring will periodically need to make compromises, and suffer. Some parents will be honest enough to admit this, and have regrets. Others will ignore the compromises that the children will need to make from time to time in life.
I appeal to Baliwala to have an open, tolerant mind, and with the passage of time she will learn, as I have, that we are truly fortunate to belong to a community where a very conspicuous majority tries to keep to the straight and narrow and carry on with our traditionally good work.
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