Literary Cure for Rush-Hour Madness

I would like to share my thoughts on a couple of books that I read recently.

One of the books came my way when I asked a colleague at work last month what book he was reading. He had studied Russian history and philosophy at university, so I knew that his recommendation would be anything other than a light read. As it turned out, he was half way through The Whisperers by Orlando Figes. When I got home that evening, I ordered a copy online and within a couple of days the 642-page book arrived. I finally finished it last week having not been able to put it down. The pages kept me gripped, taking my mind away from the daily madness of the London rush-hour.

It is a deeply moving book, filled with memoirs about life in Russia under Stalin. Told through the eyes of the people, their life stories are the contents of each chapter. These stories are drawn from several hundred family archives and interviews conducted with Memorial, a human rights and historical research centre. Chapters intertwine; the families reappear throughout the book confessing emotions of despair, hope, terror and love.

The central theme of the book is the capacity of the human spirit to withstand immense suffering, pain and hardship. Sometimes the stories seem so far removed from anything that can be understood. It was all I could do but to put the book down, compose my thoughts and try to imagine what life under such oppression must have been like. It was too difficult.

From one book about oppression, I moved to another. This week I started A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. Two women living in Afghanistan are the focus of the book; first their life under Soviet rule and then under the rule of the Taliban. It is more the circumstances that the characters find themselves in which gives the book its sadness: oppressive governments, unhappy families and abusive marriages. The most compelling element is that it gives the reader an idea of what life must have been like under the Taliban. This for me was its greatest success. It conjures up images of Afghanistan as lived by the people who are often forgotten in times of war; the citizens who try to go about their daily lives, who are often caught up in someone else’s battle.

Both books end with a mixture of tragedy and hope: hope of creating awareness about the lives ordinary people led during Stalin’s time in power; and hope for a better life in Afghanistan, where people are treated equally, justice is served and life is not lived under fear of war. I still find it hard to understand how people can be oppressed in our ‘modern’ world; and why all people are not treated equally.

As I sat on the underground train this morning on my way to work with The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing in my hand, I caught a glimpse of the front page of the Guardian newspaper. The front headline said that the Russian publishing house Atticus had cancelled publication of The Whisperers. The author Orlando Figes fears political motivations behind this move, but the publisher said that it was dropping the book for economic reasons…

Marriage

The writings by Kahlil Gibran, the Lebanese American writer. On marriage, he said:

You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days. Ay, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.But let there be spaces in your togetherness, And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.Love one another, but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup. Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf. Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone, Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music. Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping. For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts. And stand together yet not too near together: For the pillars of the temple stand apart, And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow.

I wish I could claim these words as my own, because for me they so beautifully capture the meaning of marriage. It is the ultimate expression of love, knowing that the commitment is made forever.

Shangri-La

Tibet, the “roof top of the world” or so it has aptly been named. A land surrounded by the Himalayan Mountains in some of the most inaccessible parts of the world. It has and remains a dream of mine to visit Tibet but I decided instead to venture south to neighbouring India. McLeod Ganj is the home to thousands of Tibetan refugees who have fled from Tibet under Chinese occupation. It is also the home of the Dalai Lama and the spiritual leaders of Tibet.

I applied for a position with Volunteer Tibet, a non-governmental organisation dedicated to supporting the Tibetan people who now live in Northern India (www.volunteertibet.org). Teaching English is in high demand because of the opportunities it provides for work. During the 6 weeks I stayed in this beautiful part of the world, I worked in the monasteries and with The Tibetan Women’s Institute.

With an old fashioned chalk board and a dimly lit room I taught the monks how to describe their monastery; to explain their daily routine and more importantly how to teach the world about their culture and religion. They taught me love and compassion, kindness and friendship. I will remember studying by candle light, sipping butter tea, being surrounded by red robes, bald heads and big smiles.

Although I went to teach, I learnt so much myself. I learnt that to be a monk in Tibet is an honour and highly respected position. It brings great pride to the family. A monk’s life consists of prayers, mediation and community service. Buddhism teaches love and compassion to all living beings. Buddhists believe in reincarnation. Actions undertaken in this life will have an effect on the after-life. If you do good things you have a chance to escape the continual cycle of rebirth and suffering…..

I learnt that where this is hardship and pain there seems to be stronger spiritual faith. There were pictures of religious figures wherever I went and the greatest peace leaders of our time. McLeod Ganj, this Tibetan refugee village was surrounded with pictures of the Dalai Lama on buildings, in homes, on the street walls. There was extreme poverty but also smiles. Sometimes I couldn’t quite make any sense of it all. Why is there so much suffering in the world? The Bible says in Romans verse 5 that “Suffering produces perseverance, character; and character, hope”. I realized that, in a world where there is so much pain the last thing we can do is give up. “Hope” is the key word.

I went to Mother Teresa’s home for the sick and destitute whilst I was in India and I met a partially sighted girl called Sonya who had been disowned by her family. She has a bed in a hall which sleeps about fifty other sick and homeless women. We went to a room where the orphans live – children from five months to five years. The children have a room which contains cots, a few toys and a blanket on the concrete floor. I cuddled and fed and changed nappies. So many children were crying. The 5 month old baby was the newest arrival – she had been found abandoned on the street.

Today I wonder what all these people are doing. Are they well, safe, fed, happy…..it makes me appreciate my family and my friends, my home and my community.

We don’t need to go to the other side of the world to help people. There is a saying which goes: “Be kind to everyone, because anyone you meet is fighting a harder battle”. I like this a lot because we have no idea what troubles our neighbour. I believe we have a responsibility for everyone living in this world. All we need is awareness.

The Tibetan people are losing their culture and language and live many miles from their families in a country where they can only ever be refugees. These people are some of the kindest people I have ever met. Their generosity was incredible. I wish I could do more to bring happiness into their lives.