I chose to sing and be one…
I had a rather fascinating weekend!
EVENT 1: On Saturday, I was invited by a friend of mine for a Worship Night at their church. 4 of us from the office landed up at the church without any expectations, all we knew was that our friend was in the choir and we wanted to be there for her. However, it turned out to be one of the most joyful evenings I have had of late. We spent around 90 minutes singing songs of worship along with the New City Church choir and basked in an atmosphere of joy and love.
The last time I sang songs of worship inside a church was when I was in school, I went to a catholic school, and we were often taken to the chapel to sing. This was a long time ago and I have absolutely no recollection of how I felt during those music lessons and sessions inside the chapel. But, I know that on Friday I felt connected to a group of people I had met for the very first time, I felt happy, I felt joyful, I felt at peace and I did not feel any discomfort singing songs praising Jesus (I did not even think about it till someone asked me whether I felt uncomfortable saying the Lord’s name). I felt accepted in the space and I felt safe, I was not asked to prove my faith in Jesus Christ nor was I forced to sing, I could have just sat there and listened to the choir and everybody else singing, and do absolutely nothing. However, I chose to sing and be one with everyone else.
EVENT 2: On Sunday, another friend told me about this Kabir Satsang that she was going to and asked me if I cared to join, I jumped to the offer and joined her for an evening of Kabir. That evening, Vipul Rikhi led an exhilarating exploration of spirituality, divinity and faith through songs of Kabir, Bulleh Shah and several other mystic poets. I knew some of these songs and learnt a few of them through the evening.
Like the Worship Night at New City Church, I felt connected to a group of people I had met for the very first time, I felt happy, I felt joyful and I felt at peace, singing songs of Kabir and Bulleh Shah among many others. And just like the Worship Night at New City Church, I was not forced to sing or prove my allegiance to anyone. I could have sat there, listened to Vipul and everyone else, gorged on some chips and come back home. However, I chose to sing and be one with everyone else.
I remember a few months ago, I had a similarly powerful experience. I was at the Nizamuddin Dargah and I found myself singing Qawwalis along with everyone at the Dargah and the famous Qawwals of Nizamuddin. And just like the Worship Night at New City Church and the Kabir Satsang, I felt connected to a group of people I had met for the very first time, I felt happy, I felt joyful and I felt at peace, no one even asked me if I felt uncomfortable singing songs praising Allah. And just like the Worship Night at New City Church and the Kabir Satsang, I was not forced to sing or prove my allegiance to anyone. I could have sat there, listened to Qawwals and everyone else, gorged on some kebabs later and come back home. However, I chose to sing and be one with everyone else.
In recent times, I have consistently felt uncomfortable with our political narrative which has implicitly and rather tactfully asked several citizens about their religious allegiance, their beliefs and faith. Decisions have been made based on this information. Not so surprisingly my Hindu roots have ensured that I face none of this, but I have constantly experienced the struggles through the experiences that my friends who identify as Muslims (and other religions) have experienced.
This is not the India I know. This is not the India I identify with. The India I know and identify with is a secular country and it does not differentiate based on religion and faith. As someone who today enjoys default privilege on the basis of the religion, I was born into I strongly condemn the discrimination. I do not think that our religion and how we chose to practice faith is relevant information for any decision that is made for or against us by the government or anyone else in this country and/or this world.
How I choose to practice my faith is completely up to me and is not something that is up for discussion. When spaces of faith, do not discriminate then who are we to discriminate based on how someone else chooses to practice their faith.
Whether I decide to sing or not is only up to me and no one else.
