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Monks' Dilemma
Monks' Dilemma
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Vijay, "Vibha, the bride will explain all about it shortly?"
At 11.a.m. sharp Vibhu came on the small 6'x4' make shift stage, took hold of the mike and introducing himself as younger brother of the bride, spoke, "I welcome and thank all the guests for sparing your valuable time for coming here to grace the occasion. I am grateful to Mr. Vijay, the bridegroom, his family, relations and friends to have taken all the trouble of a long journey from Udaipur. I request the bride and the bridegroom to come and sit on the two chairs here on the stage."
As both ascended the stage, bowed and saluted the audience with folded hands they were given a thunderous ovation and applause with continuing clapping of hands till Vibhu requested them to stop and listen to Vibha who was already at the mike, "While coming into the hall from rear to front I have heard whispers and murmurings about lack of festivities, gaiety, decoration and music. Since it was my idea, my decision and my determination, my father Rajpurohit Vidyadharji and my mother Shrimati Kanchanji asked me to explain about such a drastic change. As far as I am concerned it is not necessary. Pease permit me to explain in brief."
Deepti stood up and said, "It is indeed revolutionary. Please elucidate. It will be educative and may be enlightening."
There was a mingled roar, "Please, please do it, let us know all about it."
Vibha, "This decision is because of my growing commitment and concern for environment both physical and social. Both are intrinsically interconnected, inter-related and mutually reinforcing. This is the result of my training as
environmentalist while pursuing my M.Sc in Environmental Science. You will bear with me that ostentatious festivities are an unnecessary extra burden on physical environment which is already overburdened more than four times its carrying capacity. The vulgar display of invariably ill-gotten wealth on such occasions is also socially harmful because the poor cannot afford it and their daughters either commit suicide or go into compulsive monkhood. The pitch and decibel levels of music are so high that it is a serious health hazard because of the intensity of very high degree of sound pollution. As for floral decoration it is the greatest environmental sin. It is the flowers that produce fruits, seeds and all other necessities of life. If flowers are plucked away there will not be any food for almost all life-forms. Even those flowers which do not give edibles are also very essential as they provide food to numerous bees, butterflies and a vast variety of insects which are nature's indispensable pollination agents and if they perish or dwindle our food supply will be jeopardised. Plucking away flowers is abortion for trees."
Deepti sprang up from her seat, clapping and applauding, "It is wonderful. We must all vow to follow this."
Vibha, "I have something more to say. The marriage here will not be solemnised by circumambulation around fire. Anything even butter and perfume when burnt will produce carbon-di-oxide, methane and other obnoxious green house gases (GHGs), the concentration of which is already above maximum optimum limits, leading to global warming and climate change foreboding dire consequences. The ceremony will be over within a few minutes. We will take only one vow that we will be sincere and faithful to each other. I do not see any logic in recital of so called hymns which nobody
