Swamiji's Ring
Swamiji’s Ring
A fortune-teller can use magic to tell you what will happen to you in the future. That’s what some people believe. Other people think that it is all nonsense, just silly superstition.
Rahul certainly does not believe in magic or fortune-tellers or things of that kind. What nonsense, he tells his mother. Unfortunately, his mother has other ideas…
His mother came back from the visit visibly excited and hopeful.
‘Swamiji has given me something that will solve all your troubles,’ she cried, the moment she stepped into the house. Rahul looked up from the magazine at her, ready to be cautious. She was wearing a light green sari with a purple top, which was wet under her arms. The hair round her face also looked wet and lay flat on her forehead.
She searched through her bag and brought out a flat, square packet. ‘Here,’ she said, passing it to him. ‘Open it!’
Rahul unwrapped the paper. There was a metal ring inside the packet.
‘Swamiji says, put on this ring and you will find success in whatever you do. Now, you will have no trouble getting a job, no? Just wear the ring and good fortune will be with you,’ his mother cried, smiling proudly at him.
Rahul held the ring between his thumb and first finger. It was thin and light, but felt heavy with all the hope that his mother had placed on it. These fortune-tellers make me angry, Rahul thought to himself.
In the past, he had tried to make his mother understand that she was being foolish, believing in all this silly superstition, but she would never listen to him.
‘You are still young and you don’t know anything,’ she had once told him. ‘What would you know about the ways of the world? Wait until you have experience of life, like me!’ She shook her head at him in an annoying way and smiled her motherly smile.
At first, he had explained and argued, refusing to believe in these superstitions and wanting her to see the truth. But soon he found that it was easier to say nothing when his mother talked about Swamiji and his magic, because there seemed to be no way of making her think differently. She was sure that the stupid magic worked, and in the end he was happy to let her believe that.
That Friday, Rahul had an interview for an engineering job with an important international company. He wore his dark blue trousers with a light blue shirt and brushed his hair back neatly.
He had been looking for a job for the past six months, but with no success. There had been the occasional interview, always followed by the polite letter saying ‘No’, hut none of the interviews had promised a job with a better future than this one. Rahul hoped against hope that he would do well in the interview.
His mother had gone out early in the morning to pray for his success, and she returned in time to speak to Rahul before the interview. There was the matter of the ring.
‘Where is the ring, Rahul?’ she asked, noticing that he was not wearing it.
‘In my pocket, Ma. Don’t worry. I’ll put it on later,’ he said, thinking up a quick lie. He had not meant to use the ring or its so-called ‘magic’ at all. In fact, at that very moment, Rahul was worriedly trying to remember where he had last put the ring down.
‘Don’t lie,’ his mother told him, frowning. ‘You left it on the table last night and forgot all about it.’ She took it out of her sari and placed it in his hand.
‘Don’t be difficult, dear. Put it on,’ she said, with a persuasive smile.
Rahul sighed and put the ring on the first finger of his left hand, to please his mother. ‘There. Are you happy now?’ he said.
‘Now, don’t be like that,’ his mother said. ‘Swamiji’s magic will help you, now that you’re wearing the ring. Don’t be afraid or worried. You will certainly do well.’
He had clearly forgotten about the ring after that.
He was one of the first to arrive for the interview. The interviewer was a grey-haired man with glasses and a grey beard, who was the head of the company. He seemed very interested in Rahul’s education and training, and in his replies to the questions thrown at him. At the end of an hour-long interview, the grey-haired man got up from his seat and reached over to shake Rahul’s hand.
‘Well done, young man,’ he said, with a smile. ‘I very much like what I’ve seen and heard from you so far. I believe this company would do well to have someone as intelligent and enthusiastic as you. You’ve got the job.’
Rahul rose from his seat and shook the man’s hand warmly. ‘Thank you, sir. Thank you very much. You won’t be disappointed.’
They were smiling at each other and Rahul was delighted at the success of the interview. At that moment, he caught sight of the ring on his finger, and something turned over in his stomach.
‘You’ve got the job?’ his mother cried out loud, when he arrived home.
‘Yes, but-’ Rahul started to say.
‘Oh, you see, I told you! Ah, thank you, Swamiji!’ his mother was saying. ‘Tomorrow, Rahul, you will follow me to Swamiji’s house and we will take him presents, to show how grateful we are for his help. What a lucky ring, indeed!’
‘Now, see here, Ma! It’s not-’ Rahul tried to say.
‘Ah, I told you! I told you! Swamiji’s magic always works. People come to him from all over the country. Not only Hindu, no. Even Muslims and Christians, people who pray to different gods, they come to see Swamiji to ask for help and advice,’ his mother said, laughing.
Rahul pulled the ring off his finger and threw it to the ground.
His mother gasped in shock.
‘Now, see here, Ma! No lucky ring, no magic! I got this job because of all I’ve done. A good education and intelligence. None of this silly superstitious nonsense! No Swamiji! The ring was not the reason I got the job! Why does he get thanks for something he was never even a part of?’
His mother did not reply. She bent to pick up the ring, and when she stood up again, he could see her eyes filling with tears. Silently, she put the ring inside her sari and brushed her tears away with one hand.
‘Please, Ma…’ he said. He knew she would start crying, to try and soften him and make him give in to her. He had expected this.
‘No, no, Rahul. You are a big man now, with big ideas. And very clever. No need for stupid superstition or magic. What good is a silly ring or Swamiji to you? Soon, even this old woman is no good to you any more.’
And she brushed her eyes again with the back of her hand and turned to go to the kitchen to prepare dinner, leaving Rahul to search for the right words to mend the moment.