Six Acres and a Third by Fakir Mohan Senapati

Author:Fakir Mohan Senapati
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: University of California Press
Published: 2004-12-31T13:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

The Auntie from Tangi

It was Snana Purnima, a hot and humid day in the month of Jyestha. On the day of Snana Purnima, Lord Jagannath retires to his sick room. For over two months now, not one solitary drop of rain had fallen from the skies. The air was still. Trees bare of leaves stood stiff like the Garuda Pillar in front of Lord Jagannath.

Not even the leaves on the aswatha tree stirred. The sand on the village path was so hot, a handful of grains thrown on it instantly turned into puffed rice. The stray bitch of the village rolled in the mud by the edge of the pond, sticking out its tongue, as it lay gasping, but not venturing into the water. Perhaps the water was boiling. Not a single cow or calf grazed in the fields; they lay beneath the trees, chewing their cuds, looking like baishnavas, moving their mouths as if they were repeating the divine name, their eyes closed, counting their beads. Not a single crow flew across the sky. The birds took shelter among the leaves and gasped for breath. The sun was so hot it could crack one’s skull. It was already well past noon, yet the sky continued to rain embers.

Hum, my brother, hum hum

Watch brother, hum hum

Work harder, turn right, hum hum

Turn left, hum, hum.

These words chanted by palanquin bearers carried across the road to the village of Ratanpur. Attendants with five loads of gifts walked behind the palanquin, which was completely covered with a thick cloth. At this time of day, there were no menfolk in the village. Since the cultivation season had not yet begun, they had all gone with the Bagha Singh brothers to the Snana festival of Lord Baladev in Kendrapada.

There was great commotion in the village; news of the arrival of the palanquin quickly spread from one end to the other. Old and middle-aged women opened their doors and stepped out into the village path; young women peeped out, showing only their nose rings. A great debate, concerning the occupant of the palanquin, began: first, they argued about the gender, then about the status of the occupant. Some said the palanquin carried a newly married girl; others thought the occupant was the police inspector; and for still others, it contained a Sahib. Jema’s mother produced some irrefutable arguments in favor of her belief that the occupant must be none other than the police inspector taking loads of vegetables home on Snana Purnima. Had the palanquin not moved in the direction of the Bagha Singh house, there was a strong possibility her contention would have gained the status of established truth. The bearers set the palanquin down in front of the Bagha Singh house and fanned themselves with their towels, for they were sweating profusely; with their left hand, they wiped handfuls of sweat off their faces. Word was sent into the house that the aunt of the youngest daughter-in-law had arrived.

Bagha Singh’s son, Chandramni, had married the daughter of Fateh Singh of Dalijoda in the month of Makara.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.