1984 & I: Indro, The Wicked Witch of the East
<small>by GURI KAUR</small>
This year, 2009, marks the 25th Anniversary of 1984, when horrendous crimes were committed against the Sikhs in the very land of their origin. To commemorate this sad milestone, we at sikhchic.com have asked our regular columnists, as well as our contributors and readers, to share with us the impact 1984 has had on their lives. We have also sought out personal stories and anecdotes, in an attempt to capture the inner thoughts and deepest ruminations of those touched in any way by the events of that fateful year, on what 1984 means to each one of them and their loved ones - without going into a litany of facts and figures or a listing of the injustices to date, all of which will invariably be covered with due diligence elsewhere. We present these personal perspectives to you: The following is the 52nd in the series entitled "1984 & I".
October 5, 2009
To
The Editor
sikhchic.com
Dear Editor Uncle ji:
I am 13 years old and a regular reader of sikhchic.com. I enjoy it very much. It helps me in many of my class projects.
This year is the 25<sup>th</sup> anniversary of 1984 and I want to share this with others who also read sikhchic.com, and with all Sikh children around the world.
A few years ago, my two sisters, brother and I started to celebrate Halloween in a special way. We live in a small town near Boston. It has now become very popular not only among my cousins but also my class-mates in my school, and also in my Sunday school at our gurdwara.
During one of our holidays in India, we had seen how Hindus remember Ravana every year. Legend says that he did bad things to a Hindu king and his family, and therefore, they burn his effigy every year during a festival, even though thousands of years have gone by.
Just as they haven't forgotten the evil Ravana did thousands of years ago, so should we remember forever the deeds committed by Indira Gandhi
The Indian festival was a lot of fun. So, we decided to have a fun reason of our own for celebrating Halloween. Isn't this how all traditions start?
Since Indira Gandhi died on Halloween Day, 1984, as a punishment for all the terrible things she did, we believe she was turned by the gods and goddesses of India into Indro, the Wicked Witch of the East. She now forever roams around in the dark of the night, riding her broom, looking for Sikhs to apologize to.
But on Halloween night, she specially comes up to the surface from the hell below, and she can be seen and heard hiding and cackling in the trees, if you look very close.
We now commemorate the victory of good over evil in celebrating Indro's annual journey from hell and back every Halloween by making Indro masks and dressing up like her - the Wicked Witch of the East - and haunting the neighbourhood.
I must confess it generates a lot of sweets for us in our neighbourhood. And we have a lot of fun explaining who we are dressed up as, and why.
I want to share this with you in case others would like to join in on this growing tradition of celebrating Halloween by shoo-ing Indro back to her dark cave every year.
After that, we wash up and go to the gurdwara late at night to pray for the innocent people who were killed in 1984 so that they can all rest in peace in heaven.
Thank you. A Happy Halloween to everybody!
Yours sincerely
Guri Kaur
Massachusetts, U.S.A.
This article was forwarded by forum member Tejwant Singh jij :happy:
<small>by GURI KAUR</small>
This year, 2009, marks the 25th Anniversary of 1984, when horrendous crimes were committed against the Sikhs in the very land of their origin. To commemorate this sad milestone, we at sikhchic.com have asked our regular columnists, as well as our contributors and readers, to share with us the impact 1984 has had on their lives. We have also sought out personal stories and anecdotes, in an attempt to capture the inner thoughts and deepest ruminations of those touched in any way by the events of that fateful year, on what 1984 means to each one of them and their loved ones - without going into a litany of facts and figures or a listing of the injustices to date, all of which will invariably be covered with due diligence elsewhere. We present these personal perspectives to you: The following is the 52nd in the series entitled "1984 & I".
October 5, 2009
To
The Editor
sikhchic.com
Dear Editor Uncle ji:
I am 13 years old and a regular reader of sikhchic.com. I enjoy it very much. It helps me in many of my class projects.
This year is the 25<sup>th</sup> anniversary of 1984 and I want to share this with others who also read sikhchic.com, and with all Sikh children around the world.
A few years ago, my two sisters, brother and I started to celebrate Halloween in a special way. We live in a small town near Boston. It has now become very popular not only among my cousins but also my class-mates in my school, and also in my Sunday school at our gurdwara.
During one of our holidays in India, we had seen how Hindus remember Ravana every year. Legend says that he did bad things to a Hindu king and his family, and therefore, they burn his effigy every year during a festival, even though thousands of years have gone by.
Just as they haven't forgotten the evil Ravana did thousands of years ago, so should we remember forever the deeds committed by Indira Gandhi
The Indian festival was a lot of fun. So, we decided to have a fun reason of our own for celebrating Halloween. Isn't this how all traditions start?
Since Indira Gandhi died on Halloween Day, 1984, as a punishment for all the terrible things she did, we believe she was turned by the gods and goddesses of India into Indro, the Wicked Witch of the East. She now forever roams around in the dark of the night, riding her broom, looking for Sikhs to apologize to.
But on Halloween night, she specially comes up to the surface from the hell below, and she can be seen and heard hiding and cackling in the trees, if you look very close.
We now commemorate the victory of good over evil in celebrating Indro's annual journey from hell and back every Halloween by making Indro masks and dressing up like her - the Wicked Witch of the East - and haunting the neighbourhood.
I must confess it generates a lot of sweets for us in our neighbourhood. And we have a lot of fun explaining who we are dressed up as, and why.
I want to share this with you in case others would like to join in on this growing tradition of celebrating Halloween by shoo-ing Indro back to her dark cave every year.
After that, we wash up and go to the gurdwara late at night to pray for the innocent people who were killed in 1984 so that they can all rest in peace in heaven.
Thank you. A Happy Halloween to everybody!
Yours sincerely
Guri Kaur
Massachusetts, U.S.A.
This article was forwarded by forum member Tejwant Singh jij :happy:
