unrevealed

I climbed up to the top just to meet that person. A person who was unknown to me. Whom i had never met in my life. It was a calm and soothing place with no humans around. At a certain distance i could see a man using an edgy tool with a heavy bladed head mounted across a handle chopping heavy wooden logs. A little closer i reached, i see that the man had a great physique, strong arms. He was chopping those wooden logs without any extra efforts. Still i couldn't see his face. As i came closer he stopped his work and asked me to wait inside the wooden house he pointed to. I believe he might have built it. I sat on the chair, leaping outside to see the face. The room was lit by flickering sunrays from the ceiling. He entered the room but i couldn't see his face because of the lighting effect. He sat in front of me. His face was covered in dark. A grungy voice asked me,"What are your questions?" Me: (I was stunned to hear that type of tone and couldn't respond to such question immediately) Ahh...Mm...Sir Myself Ved. I am doing Masters in Journalism. According to the nature of my field, my answer to your question is yes. I am here for questions. He: Shoot!! Me: Why do you live here in middle of the jungle away from your family? He: Family...(calmly and in a soft tone) i had once. Me: Ohh..I am so sorry. I shouldn't ask this question. He: Okay no problem. Me: So how do you live in this jungle? He: I am trained to live in any condition. Me: Okay but i meant without money how can you survive? He: For survival you don't need money. Only your spirit of living is enough. Me: I have studied one of your log book. It says you have survived 50 degree Celsius of heat for months and that too without food. Is that true? How could you manage the heat? Anyone could faint in a span of few hours. What led you to go through this phase? (He took a deep breath) He: 'Swadharme nidhanam shreyaha' Which means - it is a glory to die doing one’s duty. Me: I am still not able to connect with your thoughts, that why someone unknown to me, unknown to many is willing to die for? He: For me it is and will always be 'Kartavyam anvatma'. Duty before death. Me: Who gives you such duties to follow? He: Me. Me: What gives you the satisfaction of serving them who are unknown to you? Who are not knowing you? Who hardly take care for you? He: 'Balidanam vir lakshanam' - sacrifice is a characteristic of the brave. Me: If you don't mind can you tell me about your family? (I felt a sudden change in his voice. He was wiping his right eye. It was dark but i think i saw him crying) He: I was on duty in J&K while my mother, father, my wife and my daughter were in Pune. Before reporting the camp i had a phone call with my wife. They were going for offering prayer to Lord Ganesha (Siddhivinayak, Mumbai). Do you know for whom they went all the way from Pune to Mumbai? Me: For your well being and safety? He: Not only me but for our whole regiment. My wife told me that morning, that she is going to offer prayers for our regiment and our families and wish to see us alive in single piece sitting with family enjoying the WE hours. After their visit to temple, they took Mumbai local to visit my relatives. (He paused for a minute and continued) He: Lately around 9pm we got the news about the train blast. I rushed to the campsite to get the access to satellite phone. I tried reaching all their numbers. None of them were reachable. For the first time in my life i felt the fear that they were experiencing while i was on duty. I was out of my senses. Was feeling restless. Unable to think what to do next. (Wiping his tears) My relatives in Mumbai somehow managed to contact me and informed me about my family. (In a concluding tone) And now here I am on a leave and will be resuming my duty soon. Me: (Still couldn't see his face) May i know your name Sir? (His face appeared from the dark, and his left eye was scratched badly. He could only see through his right eye) He: Sorry i cannot. We have some protocols to follow. Let me tell you one thing you have an image in your mind that once we get into this uniform, we don't carry our heart with us! We become a mean-maniac-war-machine irrespective of a single thought of what will happen to me, to my family, to my daughter. But i need you to pay attention!! We are humans, we have feelings, we have emotions. To add more fact we also have a consistent fear of failure. But we are never trained to how to tackle it. What happens if a Batsman is on strike and whole crowd in stadium is least interested to boost his morale?? Clean bowled!! With no second chance!! Me: (I just got the feeling that i have done nothing to support these guys in my entire life except singing National Anthem hardly twice or thrice in a year. Which is just not enough. I believe we need to support them who are unknown to us but are on constant duty for us. I without any words, saluted him and left without throwing any more irrelevant questions.)

Dedicated to: Indian Army, Indian Air Force, Indian Navy, and all other lions who are protecting their kingdom.