Redemption-chapter 54
"We spend so long trying to be what other people want,that when we look in the mirror,
we see a stranger."? Anthony T. Hincks
Dilemma
A noble warrior went to the Zen temple seeking peace. Upon finding the master in calm meditation, the warrior was overcome with sadness. Though he knew he had fought bravely and justly his entire life, he feared that he would never possess the grace of the man before him.
"Why do I feel so inferior?" asked the warrior. "I know I have fought with honor, defended the weak, and I have nothing to be ashamed of. Yet seeing you just now, I felt my life had no significance whatsoever."
"Wait a while," said the master, smiling. "I will speak with you after I attend to the other visitors."
The warrior sat beneath a garden tree as visitors streamed through the temple, each one leaving the gentle master with expressions of warmth in their faces. The warrior grew even sadder.
As night fell and the visitors dwindled, the warrior became distressed and asked the master, "Can you teach me now?"
The master nodded and they walked to the rear study, where the moon shone through a giant window, washing everything in pale white light.
"Do you see the moon, how beautiful it is?" said the master. "It will cross the sky, and make way for the sun. The sun is much brighter, and stronger, and can illuminate clouds and mountains and trees in ways that the moon cannot. Yet... I have never heard the moon complain Why don't I shine like the sun, is it because I am inferior?'"
"Of course not," said the warrior. "The sun and the moon are different, each has its own beauty. You cannot compare the two."
"So you know your answer. We are two different people, each fighting in his own way for that which he believes, and making it possible to make the world a better place; the rest are mere appearances."
SOUL TALK AS SOULS TALK
Rudran took a sip from his cup of coffee and placing it back on the table stared at it lost in his thoughts and Police commissioner rakesh menon continued to stare at him.
Then forgetting his position,forgetting the surroundings he looked at rudran who looked up at the same time and as their eyes met,Rudran flashed a smile and " sir,ask me what ever it is you want to ask me and i promise i will answer them honestly."
Rakesh menon " tell me about yourself,that is only if you are willing to do so."
Rudran shrugged his shoulders "sir,i am just a normal guy like everyone else.I had parents,a normal childhood,a normal teenage life and after college i decided to join the Police dept because of my economic stability.We are pretty well off and hence i decided to dedicate myself to the people of this nation and for the nation itself."
Rakesh menon " sorry mr.rudran,but i have to confess that i feel that there is nothing normal about you."
Rudran looked at him in surprise " nothing normal about me.I guess you are judging me with what happened today and what has transpired over the past week.But sir,that is due to my training and maybe a bit of luck and also that these criminals had probably never faced an opponent with my level of training and expertise and well it was their bad luck i suppose that they happened to cross paths with me.So let me assure you that i am as normal as you and the next person."
Rakesh " oh,i am using the word normal not in relation to the current cases and what i meant was that you are not normal in a good sense.And that applies when it comes to your job and as a human being.You are not corrupted or tainted like the rest of us and i can sense the motivation and discipline is still burning strong in you and as brightly as ever."
Seeing Rudran stare at him,Rakesh menon sighed " mr.rudran,i envy you for what you are and what you are doing.Long ago i was like you,all fire and zeal but a few years into my job,all of that was trampled into dust by people in office and people with political power and money power.I have been transferred so many times that i became desolate and my vision wavered and now i sit before you all diluted and waiting for my term to get over.I don't think i will feel bad when i hang up my uniform and turn my back on this job for i have ended up doing more bad than good.Honestly,let me confess that many a time i wish i had joined the army for at least then i wouldn't have witnessed so much corruption and abuse of power."
Rudran nodded " i totally agree with you sir.But i have lot of sympathy for the police dept and the armed forces for they are at the beck and call of these bas***d politicians who come to power very briefly and yet leave behind such chaos and damage.At some point,be it a police officer or an army man,everyone stops and wonders 'what the heck am i doing here,slogging my backside for this country,when no one recognizes our sacrifice or the conditions we work in.For example,a typical police man has only a lathi with which to protect himself from criminals who wield knives and guns and let me be brutally honest when i say,that most of us would run to save their lives and would be justified in those circumstances.The naive and stupid public never realise that even a policeman can be targeted by the very same criminals who target them,hiding behind the ruling party.That is why,i never show mercy to these bas***ds who carry guns and target innocent people.I might even turn a blind eyes to petty thefts or small crimes of that nature but i never turn away from people who are involved in kidnapping,murder for hire and terrorist activities."
Rakesh menon smiled understandingly " are you married?"
Rudran shook his head " no sir,unmarried and i doubt if i will ever be married."
" But surely,you must have met someone who interested you or at least someone who showed interest in you."
Rudran stared at the steam coming off the coffee cup and with a shy smile " probably."
Rakesh " Probably,that's it.go on now."
Rudran " well,there is this lady who i have met recently and i sense her interest in me but i am not sure what to make of it or where her feelings are coming from.I mean if they are coming from the right place or artifically created by certain circumstances we both were in."
Police commissioner rakesh looked at rudran with a paternal feeling " i suppose this lady's name is Renuka,the daughter of Kandaswamy mudaliyar."
Rudran nearly jumped out of his chair " what,but how."
Rakesh menon " son,i am pretty sure that you have a wiz brain and genius thought process but i too possess a little bit of that although probably not in the same range as yours."
Rudran looked at rakesh and rakesh looked back at rudran and he knew the commissioner had made the connections from the phoenix mall case and his subsequent involvement in the kidnapping case of Rahul agarwals grandkid's.
Rudran raised his cup in salute " bravo,bravo sir."
Rakesh " so,what is the problem or why the dilly dallying."
Rudran shook his head " I have too much going on in my life sir,too much of stuff which is dangerous and as it is,me and my family are being targeted by a dangerous criminal and if they know that i have someone in my life via the way of love interest,then she and her family will become targets too.Knowingly or unknowingly,i am not prepared to put any other person in danger because of me and my job.Maybe some of us are doomed to spend their lives alone,in their lonely jobs of protecting and defending the little good that still remains in this world."
SOUL TALK AS SOULS TALK-part one
To be continued
Edited by s.satishkumar - 9 years ago