Jagdish Prasad Mandal (Original Maithili Short Story)
Rameshwar Prasad Mandal (English Translation)
Service
Early in the morning, when Bhushan Uncle went out for his walk, he saw from a distance that on both sides of the road, east and west, groups of women were talking among themselves. He kept walking forward, though in his mind the thought had already taken shape that something must have happened in the village and it was this incident the women were discussing.
As he walked along the road with his eyes fixed downward, watching the path closely, his ears were pricked, ready to catch some hint of the matter. Yet when he was still a little way off, the women continued their chatter, but as soon as he came near, they all fell silent. Thus, not a word of the conversation reached his ears.
Even though he had heard nothing, his mind kept turning over the possible nature of the incident being discussed. By the time he reached the main road leading out of the settlement, there was still no clue.
That morning, Bhushan Uncle was walking alone, with no companion to exchange words with. As usual, he went as far as the village’s southern boundary and then turned back home daily. On the way, he did meet two or three men and women, but they showed no sign of speaking to him, and he could not bring himself to ask them anything.
When he reached home after his walk, his curiosity had only grown stronger. The reason was the thought that if most of the people of the village already knew the news or the talk, then why was he still in the dark? Yet another thought came to him, softening his self-reproach: even though humanity has an immense history, there are such animals or creatures in the forest that a person may never have seen. So if he too did not yet know about some event in the village, what great loss was there in that? Still, the thought came to Bhushan Uncle that since this was a village matter, it was indeed surprising that he had not heard of it yet. After reaching home, another idea crossed his mind: even if he had not heard, his wife must have. Why not simply ask her and find out? Then again, he told himself, his wife was no different from anyone else. If he repeated to someone what she told him, and it turned out to be untrue, would he not be blamed for spreading it?
Lost in such weighing of options, Bhushan Uncle was sitting on a chair in the doorway when he saw Sumaritlal coming up the road from south to north. As soon as Sumaritlal came near, Bhushan Uncle called out- “Sumarit, you seem to have forgotten us completely!”
Since Sumaritlal regarded Bhushan Uncle with respect, he came straight to the doorway without saying anything, sat down on another chair, and replied- “Uncle, what can I say? I spend the whole day worrying about matters at home.”
Bhushan Uncle said- “You worry unnecessarily. Think about how the household can move forward and put your efforts into that work. Worry alone will bring nothing.”
Agreeing with him, Sumaritlal said- “Uncle, that is exactly what I try to think, but the family members are such that they never let my thoughts stay steady, nor let my mind be at peace.”
Without pursuing the subject further, Bhushan Uncle said-
“Sumarit, as long as you live and are part of family life, there will always be entanglements. So why are you getting unceasing worried forit?”
Finally Sumaritlal replied-
“Yes, Uncle, my own heart says the same, but sometimes it happens that I get caught in some sort of web for no reason, otherwise I would simply leave the house.”
Hearing this, Bhushan Uncle laughed and said-
“Sumarit, even if you leave home, life will still go on. What will you do then?”
Admitting himself at a loss, Sumaritlal said-
“That’s exactly why I don’t leave.”
Changing the subject, Bhushan Uncle asked- “Sumarit, has any new incident taken place in the village?”
Sumaritlal replied-
“I have heard a faint hint of something, but I don’t know it clearly.”
Bhushan Uncle asked- “What hint have you heard?”
Just then, by coincidence, Janaklal was walking down the road from north to south. Seeing him, Sumaritlal said-
“Uncle, now we will know the whole story.”
Janaklal was known in the village as someone who was always in the thick of every bit of news, spending his days stirring conversations and spreading talk. As soon as he came in front of the doorway, Bhushan Uncle called out,
“Janak, come here for a moment before you go any further.”
Janaklal stepped up to the doorway and said-
“Uncle, my respects to you.”
“Stay well,” Bhushan Uncle replied. “Janak, what is the news in the village?”
“Uncle, a great injustice has taken place,” Janaklal answered.
Hearing the words “a great injustice,” Bhushan Uncle looked startled and asked- “What great injustice has taken place, Janak?”
Janaklal said- “Do you know Varaspati?”
“That same Varaspati who lives in Assam?” Bhushan Uncle asked.
Nodding, Janaklal replied- “Yes, yes, the same Varaspati.”
“What happened to him?” Bhushan Uncle asked.
Janaklal began- “It has been nearly five years now. Before that time, he used to come to the village every year and send money home every month, enough to keep his family going.”
Sumaritlal interrupted- “Who is in his family?”
“His parents have passed away,” Janaklal said. “Only his wife and a daughter of about four and a half years are there.”
“What happened to him then?” Bhushan Uncle asked again.
“Uncle, I will tell you everything as I understand it,” Janaklal replied.
Sumaritlal broke in again-
“Janak bhai, your house is right next to Varaspati’s, so you must also know how much he spend on things like salt and oil.”
Janaklal said-
“Uncle, for the last five years Varaspati has neither come to the village nor sent a single rupee.”
Hearing Janaklal’s account, Bhushan Uncle began to weigh the matter in his mind. If Varaspati’s family, meaning his wife and child, were living in the village and yet he neither came home nor sent money, then how was the family managing? The more Bhushan Uncle thought, the more different questions arose. He decided it would be best to first hear from Janaklal exactly what he knew. Only when one reaches even a small part of the root of a problem can it be properly understood. Speaking without knowing could easily turn out to be wrong.
Steadying his thoughts, Bhushan Uncle said-
“Janak, tell me what you know.”
Janaklal replied-
“Uncle, I have not seen it with my own eyes, but I have certainly heard it with my own ears.”
Sumaritlal broke in-
“Are you giving testimony in court now, the way you keep hedging? Just say what you know.”
Janaklal said- “Sumarit bhai, I have heard that Varaspati is living with a woman in Assam and has even married her.”
Laughing, Bhushan Uncle said- “Janak, for many years I have heard that the tribal women in Assam turn our menfolk into cattle, tie them to a peg in the fields for grazing all day long and when they themselves return home in the evening, they bring the men back too, and at home treat them again like men.”
Janaklal, who had also heard such talk from old folks, said- “Uncle, I have heard the same, so I agree with you, but I have not seen it myself.”
Bhushan Uncle asked- “If Varaspati has not sent money for four or five years, then how is his family managing?”
Janaklal answered- “Uncle, his wife is quick-witted. Sometimes she does a bit of sowing and planting; otherwise she spends most of her time gossiping here and there.”
Bhushan Uncle said- “All right, she can do what she likes. That is not the point. Tell me what happened today.”
Janaklal said- “The last time Varaspati left the village, his wife was pregnant. About seven or eight months after he had gone, a daughter was born. She is a very beautiful child.”
Bhushan Uncle thought to himself that such a thing was certainly possible. Carrying the thought forward, he asked- “Was the child brought up entirely by his wife, meaning Varaspati’s wife?”
“Yes,” Janaklal replied.
Sumaritlal interjected-
“All right, she did what she did. But what exactly happened today?”
With a look of surprise, Janaklal said-
“Sumarit bhai, sometime during the night, that woman left the little girl sleeping and ran away from the house.”
Bhushan Uncle asked- “Did she run away alone, or with some man?”
Janaklal answered- “Uncle, it is not yet certain whether she went with anyone, but what is clear is that she has left home. In the morning, when Marni, meaning Varaspati’s daughter, woke up and did not see her mother, she stayed quiet for a while but then began to cry, and she has been crying ever since.”
Hearing this news, Bhushan Uncle called out to his wife. When she came and stood in front of him, she asked- “What is it?”
Bhushan Uncle said- “Let us all go and bring that child, Marni, here to our home and take care of her. She is a girl, and when the time comes for her marriage, we will give her to someone as our own.”
Hearing his words, his wife stood silently. Bhushan Uncle then turned to Sumaritlal and asked- “Sumarit, what do you think?”
Sumaritlal replied- “Uncle, there is no greater religion than serving another human being. I support your thought not just fully but with all my heart.”
“And you, Janak, what do you say?” Bhushan Uncle asked.
Janaklal answered- “Uncle, what you are thinking is exactly what I am thinking as well.”
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