Karma

I recall my grandmother, a staunch Catholic, using coconut oil to massage and pull the limbs of newborn babies, a practice that mother Basdai spoke about.

I dared not ask my grandmother what she was doing as she bent over the child, face deep in concentration, bottom lip pushed out in that stern way when she was focused. I found out years later that it was a ritual to strengthen the child and imbue positive life force into their new human form.

Childbirth is a sacred, serious event for the Hindu; throughout the process, the woman is central.

The aajee, grandmother, would whisper the name of God to the baby while in the womb. Everyone is especially careful with the pregnant woman who is believed to have “one foot in the grave, one foot out.” There is also a strong focus on God and prayer. A photo of Baby Krishna is on the wall, watching over everything and to ensure that the baby is “chul chul” like Baby Krishna, that is mischievous, but miraculous too.

Once the baby is born, the mother and grandmother of the new mummy take charge. “In the nursing home, they send you to take a shower after you have the child. Not in a Hindu home. We have to massage the belly with coconut oil and you have rituals to do. It’s only after the sixth day that the mother will take a bath, with special herbs for cleansing.” As part of these rituals, the afterbirth is buried, not flushed or burnt. It gives literal meaning to the local phrase “my navel string bury here,” and is symbolic of grounding the child to the place of his or her birth.

Outsiders are still not allowed to see the baby. The family is focusing on infusing the child with their energy, while singing almost constantly. On the 12th day, visitors are allowed, and even then they are careful “who shadow fall on the child.” My grandmother used to say “kiss the child on dey foot” with her lip pushed out.

The belief in reincarnation and karma are fundamental to Hindu philosophy and teachings.

The newborn will treat with any unresolved issues, or unfulfilled karma. As the child grows, he or she will be taught certain principles and values guided by the guru, that is, anyone who can take you from a position of darkness to one of light. The first guru is the mother. “When you have a problem you go to Ganesh. When you have a real problem, you go to your mother or to Laskhmi.” These ancient traditions hold much wisdom for us. This week, a little girl of 11 years old was drugged by a sweet she accepted from a taxi driver. The story shows that there is much that we are not teaching our children, and so are contributing to their vulnerability to abuse.

Rituals like the massaging of coconut oil must strengthen all our youth, or we face the consequences of a karma we do not want, because we allowed too many shadows to fall upon our children and on the face of our beautiful nation.

Dara Healy is a performance artist and founder of the NGO, the Indigenous Creative Arts Network – ICAN