Lucky 13

HAPPY LOHRI!

Who says '13' is an unlucky number?
Well, all those who bunked the exercises today will have reasons to say so. And all those who left the warmth of their homes early morning and braved the freezing cold outside will never regret coming to the Garden today. Indeed, February 13 turned out to be one of our luckier days.
Yes, it was Lohri, the harvest festival celebrated in north India (mainly by Punjabis) to mark the winter solstice and the onset of spring. A ceremonial lighting of the community bonfire had been scheduled for the evening. But on our part, we ushered in the festival at sunrise with the ritual clapping and singing of “Happy Lohri”. And Jagmohan Papneja, in a rare invocation of the Dulla Bhatti legend, rattled off “Sundar mundree ho/ Tera kaun vichara ho/ Dulla Bhatti wala ho/ Dulhe di dhee vyayhee ho!” with Ved Prakash Grover providing the sound effects at appropriate points.
But that was more of a side show. The real celebration was of Teja Singh Bhambra’s 74th birthday, which came as a big surprise. For one, his birthday was yesterday and for another, he had just celebrated his return to the Garden barely four days back (see post) with pethas from Faridabad, the taste of which is still fresh in our mouth. But the generous soul that he is, he came today carrying a huge bag, full with 'breakfast boxes' of fresh sandwiches, gulaab-jamun, salted cashew…
Clearly, he had accounted for the usual complement of 30-odd who attend the exercises regularly every morning. But since more than half the members did not turn up today (due to the cold), their loss was our gain. Sardar-ji was is no mood to take back their share and we all ended up with two boxes each!
More than receiving double our due, what struck us most about this genial Sikh gent was his large-heartedness. Obviously, to him, lavishing a treat is not a formality (as it is for some of us), but a gesture that is sincere and loaded with love. Much as he appears silent and self-effacing for the most part, his actions speak louder than words. We have a lot to learn from him.
May our dear Sardar-ji be showered with all the goodness of the universe and enjoy good health and abundant happiness in life. That’s the least we wish for him on his birthday.
Harish Wadhwa:
Oye, inni soni pag te sweater pa ke sade aziz te saheb, Shri Teja Singh-ji, bahoon vadiya te jawan lag rahe ene. Janam din dee te Lohri dee, twanu lakh lakh vadhayiyan! Jug-jug jiyo, te ral-mil ke khushiyon naal jiyo, bas yehi upar wale da ashirwad hove.
Jagmohan Papneja:
Though the Lohri festival has no religious significance, it holds great social relevance. And Sardar Teja Singh-ji has celebrated it as a day of imparting love to one and all. Gulaab-jamun di mithaas, salted cashew di darkar dil di khushi, te sardar-ji da pyar... Mubarak hove tuhanu LOHRI da tyohaar!