D - MONSOON PRAYER

MONSOON PRAYER

N.D. 09 August 2002.

"Rain, rain, go away,

Come again, another day,

Little Johnny wants to play".

The sweet words of this nursery rhyme do not sound sweet in the
drought-affected areas.

The blazing sun is looking down angrily on the parched earth, the grass
no longer green, the fields barren with no crops, and the trees longing
for water to fall on them from above ____ the sky ____ to quench their
thirst, the earth equally thirsty, cracked up at places, the cracks
looking like open lips wanting a new lease of life from the rains. The
rains are very much wanted, but what! No rains around.

Blame is on the weatherman, who had forecast a normal monsoon this year
in India. But nature has played her trick. For this inevitable climatic
change man blames man for the global warming which is affecting the
weather conditions.

India is an agricultural country, and depends mainly on a normal yearly
monsoon. With the second largest population in the world, without a
good harvest people will have to go hungry. Rice and wheat being the
staple food sufficient water is needed for the growing of these crops.
People of the drought-affected areas are praying to Indra Devta (Rain
God) to shower his blessings.

This is a peculiar prayer from a tribal community of eastern India.
They perform the frog marriage, a unique celebration to appease the
Rain God.

The celebration starts with the village headman, seated in a new
palanquin with a male frog, which is the bridegroom, going to the
bride's house.

The bride, a female frog, is housed in with another village man who
acts as the bride's father. He organizes the marriage ceremony.

The bridegroom comes in a procession, accompanied by a large number of
men and musicians playing on indigenous musical instruments and there
is a huge display of fireworks.

On arrival at the brides place, womenfolk of the village start with
their traditional rituals. The ceremony starts with the ladies washing
the bridegroom with turmeric water amidst the blowing of conch
shells.

The rituals are followed step-by -step and the marriage is solemnized.
The male and female frogs are declared husband and wife. The men and
women of the village go to the neighbouring riverbank to bid the
marriage couple, a good bye. Thus they please the Rain God.

Water is a basic necessity of life. Rivers, lakes, ponds and other
reservoirs, natural or artificial, will dry up without rainfall. Even
drinking water will become scarce. So monsoon has to come as the
saviour.

Can science help now or only prayers or God's grace?