Thepfulhoukho Kuotsu
In life strange things happen. They can be striking and funny too. If you ever have noticed this, I bet, you will feel funny about it - that seasons come and go. Maybe this is not something new anymore and so it rarely strikes our mind unless the romanticist rings her poetic bell. Well, we have just witnessed a decorative season filled with weddings all around. If you may ask me what really stands out here, my quick answer would be this - The Bridal Walk. Again, if you may ask me why, my witty reply would be simple - why not?
We live in a world where we still fall short of something very crucial. The struggle of women and their place in the society is underachieved. Likewise, our society is no exception to it. Unfortunately, even when their voice is heard, it is often so because of certain political bargaining and not because they deserve it. This is something we need to ponder upon.
For now, however, the focus is primarily on the treasured hour of the bride. The bride in her soft voice says, “Yes! This is my candid moment. I shall, in all elegance, walk triumphantly and flawlessly.” Perhaps this is something very special to every bride – a walk to remember once in a lifetime.
Let us briefly consider the concept. The bridal walk is widely practiced across the Christendom world. It is symbolic in nature. It represents the start of a new phase of life for the bride and the bridegroom. Initially, the bride walks toward the bridegroom. The resultant effect is the declaration of the two as ONE – beyond mathematical formula. Naturally, they become wedded couple. In the bridal walk, the bride follows the music carefully and steps in accordingly. This is probably the rough picture we have drawn on the bridal walk. However, going by the ethos of one’s oral tradition, the inquisitive child would still want to hear more from the silver-haired grand mom or dad. Therefore, the grandma/pa would sip a bit of brew from the brown bamboo mug and twist the story this time around.
To manufacture any consumer’s product, it requires a lot of raw materials. Likewise, the build-up of the present story requires at least four essential questions; who will do the walking? where to walk? how to walk? And finally, when to walk? The response to these questions will play a significant role in arriving at a desired destination. To bring to fruition the irreplaceable bridal walk, it is necessary that we formulate a premise. For this let us coin an imaginary term, say, “Veil of Inclusion.” The good news is that under the “veil of inclusion” the bridal walk is extended to every willing person – women and men, married and unmarried. More importantly, there will be a necessary breaking of barriers in terms of physical, social, and ritual boundaries.
In response to the first question, eventually everybody gets equal space to do the walking. Unlike the public services examinations, the eligibility criterion is minimal. People from all walks of life; young and old, including widows, orphans, differently abled, coloured, race, caste, tribes, creed, refugees, vendors, and the unnoticed in the present-day mainstream culture will be included. In other words, the sociological categories such as gender, age and status remains negligible.
Where do we walk then? Since our Cathedrals are filled, I think, one might need to walk into the chaotic and corrupted streets. Some may step upon the potholes road without using Scorpio & Bolero. Some may walk along the modern ghettoised corridors. If need be one may be prepared to walk compassionately along the metropolitan slums and the homeless. Others may walk inside the closed-door top brass ministerial abode. Still others may choose to walk across the highly sensitised zone marred by perennial conflicts. Some may have to even climb the tall walls of barricaded patriarchy and oppressive regimes in order to reclaim justice. Watch out, however, these are radical walks.
On the question of How and When to walk; it can be quite challenging. The reason is partly due to the presence of multiple voices. The music is of diverse kind. Nevertheless, each bride will hear the music accordingly. Therefore, one may choose to follow the drumbeat and not be swayed by the crowd or intimidated by the societal pressures. As for the time or the day of the bridal walk, we can say, now is the budding season. For a generation like ours the bridal walk remains a necessity. Perhaps there is one condition, i.e., it entails our unswerving commitment.
Think of few people who had walked in their times. William Wilberforce walked inside the terribly hostile British Parliament to present the bill against slave trade. Martin Luther King Jr., the dreamer, walked across the United States to uproot the rampant racial discrimination. South African Braveheart Nelson Mandela walked steadfastly to eradicate brutal apartheid. Constitution framer B.R. Ambedkar walked into the muddy Indian Caste field with the mission to uplift the oppressed and the dalits. The Albanian born Mother Teresa walked out of her comfortable dreamland, Europe, to be with the destitute until her last breath. Hearing & visually impaired Helen Keller miraculously walked against the “normal” tide. Teenager Anne Frank left her unforgettable “Diary” as she walked past the Nazi Concentration Camps.
Most notably, Jesus of Nazareth, clothed in humility, walked in and around volatile Galilee and radically changed the entire course of human history. The legacy continues. Quite evidently,many reformers have persistently walked into the brahmanical soil to combat the practice of sati, dowry, child marriage & female infanticide. Similarly, few peacemakers, women & men, stepped into the erstwhile frontier hills to reconcile the warring Naga villages and brought an end to the inglorious headhunting. Many more have walked meticulously by rather keeping a low profile. Behold, multitudes of bride have delightfully walked past the sea of darkness throughout the seasons.
Dad would often say, “Son, I cannot be in your shoe.” After he walked away, I realise what he meant. Except for the bride herself, no other person can do the walking in her place. That is why it is irreplaceable. If there is a worthy bride ever, it would be you and me. Why not walk alongside today? For this temporal lane is just a walkable distance away from the wide-stretched eternity’s shore.
