From the last four day I have been following the incidents related to the Mumbai terrorist attacks on all kinds of media and news sources (such as TV, Twitter, Blogs, Live video streams, Foreign News channels, Foreign and India print media, security sites and even terrorist websites!). I sat in front of the television with my laptop and followed the incident on twitter (#mumbai), websites and TV channels simultaneously. I have reviewed every statement and incident in great detail (while ignoring my personal and professional responsibilities).

I have come to the conclusion that everything that could go wrong with our (India’s) handling of this disaster has gone wrong. We were caught napping.

Terrorists came to OUR land, shed OUR (and our guests’) blood

They made a mockery of our system as they hijacked a government vehicle and roamed about in the city spraying bullets from it.

They smiled at us before shooting us from a point blank range.

They have come to our land and ravaged us repeatedly and we have been unable to act!

On the contrary, they were completely successful in all that they wished to accomplish. This is our failure, not victory. We are ashamed and now unable to hold our head high in the international community. This failure is devastating. It has hurt our pride. Israel has called our handling of this event as slow and confused response. We gave them the opportunity to say this and we had nothing concrete to defend ourselves. (In a world where globalization and free trade has been rapidly expanding, it is the supreme responsibility of every country to protect its people, businesses, and guests. A failure is absolutely unacceptable)

History is a testament to the fact that we have always failed to protect ourselves from foreign attacks. Babur, Mahamud of Ghazni, Ahmed Shah Abdali, Nadir Shah and the East India Company: They all came and bled us white (with exception of Babur who chose to settle down and make our country his own, however it is believed that Mughal era was a period of intellectual darkness for India).

I believe that our police system is incapable of protecting us. While our army is capable, their potency is severely marred by our political system.

Considering all this I have concluded that we as a country have become incapable of protecting ourselves. Whatever has transpired so far makes me feel insecure.

I feel alone and insecure on my soil and in my house.

I am considering buying a gun, a bullet proof jacket/helmet and join a military training course. I will wear the jacket every time I go to a public place so that I have some chance of surviving such an attack. I’d rather fight the terrorists than die helplessly at their gun point. I have spent considerable time and effort in becoming whatever little I am. My parents have spent loads of time, money and sacrificed in supporting me to become someone. My life is important to me. I believe that I can make a difference somewhere and I therefore refuse to die cheaply at the hands of some gun totting, brainless and fucked-up zealot.

I am sure this thought may be going through the minds of many Indians. We have collectively lost faith in our political system and they are repeatedly reaffirming our beliefs with their immature actions during this crisis situation. Here is what I am talking about:

• Maharashtra’s Chief Minister goes on a disaster site tour (read picnic) with a movie director and his son (a movie actor).

For Christ’s sake show some seriousness man. Why do need to have a movie director and an actor by your side during such a tour?? Is this a joke?? Don’t you even care about what the media and the people will think about you?

• BJP Senior Leader and PM candidate for next central elections decides to skip an all party meet convened to discuss this critical security issue at hand. Reason?

He thinks that campaigning for a state assembly election in Rajasthan is more important that trying to work together to device a new fool-proof security set-up for our country.

• State Home Minister of Maharashtra called the Terror Attacks on Mumbai as a minor and casual/common incident in a big city like Mumbai. (He actually said exactly that!!)

Jeez!! Was this guy drunk or something? Some one please remove him immediately!!!

• A ruling party spokesperson on Karan Thapar’s show (War of Words) is asked a direct question about this failure and he shamelessly tries to evade it.

He knows that Mr. Thapar can grill him on the issue and he therefore just evades the questions altogether. Isn’t he answerable to the nation?

• On Headlines Today (an Indian News Channel), the anchor asks a ruling party spokesperson a direct question which is as follows:

Why did the NSG commandos take 9 hours to reach Mumbai from Delhi, when they are capable of reaching any location in India within 2 hours?

To this the minister says that the info is incorrect. At best the NSG commandos could have reached the site within 7 hours i.e. “just” two hours earlier…

This guy calls two valuable hours, “just two hours”. Can you imagine the number of lives that could be saved had the NSG reached even an hour earlier? He is bargaining on a matter of national security right in front of the nation and on a live show!!! This is akin to saying, “hey we are not naked; we still have the undees on…”

Shocked at such a remark by the minister, the anchor rightfully blasts the minister and his audio channel is muted, virtually removing him from the discussion(perhaps to allow others to speak).

• The outgoing home minister says that he decided to quit (read sacrifice his post) so that other officials need not have to face the heat/axe on this debacle.

OMG!! This guy is a saint and he needs to be decorated for this “sacrifice”. Sarcasms apart, I think he is one of the most incapable home ministers our country has ever seen. His remarks on the television regarding every terrorist incident the country has faced (in the recent past) have been very casual and many say that he was not even perceived to be taking any steps to improve the security situation in the country.

We the citizens of the largest democracy in the world are totally frustrated by our politicians. It is not that we do not have the intelligentsia to run our country; it is about this cancerous system called the Indian politics that has frustrated us beyond any measure.

1. “shabd-bheydi band kala”, the very word reminded me of the story of Ekalavya. We all know that Ekalavya used to practice archery in front of a clay idol of Dhronacharya as Dhrona did not admit the guy into his academy. It is said that once when Ekalavya was practicing archery deep inside the forest he heard a dog (from far away) barking loudly and coming towards him. This was disturbing Ekalavya and he shot seven to eight arrows in the direction of the dog (which was very far away on the basis of where the sound was coming from. His arrows pierced the inside of the dog’s upper mouth. It was like when the dog had it mouth open (in the process of barking) the arrows hit the inside of his upper mouth such that he could not close his mouth and hence could not bark. This was an incredible show of archery by any standards even till date. It was a show of the “shabd-bheydi band kala” or the voice piercing arrow craft. That dog belonged to Dhrona and when Dhrona saw the dog with those arrows in its mouth, he realized that Eklavaya was a serious threat to Arjun’s number one position in the world. Rest is what we all know!

2. In Ramayana, once when King Dhashrata went out in the jungle for hunting, he could not find any game and went deep into the forest searching for one. Deep in the forest, he spotted a deer, but lost sight of it again. Desperate to get the game, he followed the deer very carefully. He set himself at a point and waited for the deer to emerge from the bushes. After waiting for a while, he ran out of patience and then suddenly he heard some noise from behind the bushes. He immediately shot an arrow in the direction of that sound expecting it to be a deer. But to his horror he realized that it was a boy. This boy was Shravan Kumar (whose examples of obedience are given till date) and knowing of his death his parents had cursed Dhashrata that his sons will not be present at the time when he will need them the most. The arrow that killed Shravan Kumar was again a “shabd-bheydi band” or voice-piercing arrow.

3. In History and even from the TV programme “Discovery of India” (which used to come on DD long before cable TV hit the scene), I have studied that Prithvi Raj Chauhan had lost a battle to the invading army of Mahumad Ghori. Ghori had imprisoned Prithvi Raj and insulted him every possible manner. And he had also blinded Prithvi Raj by piercing his eyes with red hot iron rod. He is also supposed to have ravaged many innocent women and children. This had angered Prithvi Raj but he was helpless as he was himself a prisoner to the invader.

Prithvi Raj’s former courtier Chand Bardai, who was later to compose the Prithviraj Raso, a ballad-biography of Prithvi Raj, came to Ghori to be near Prithvi Raj in his misery. Chand Bardai came in disguise and secured himself a place in Mahmud’s court by purveying his skills as a composer of poems. On the one hand, he earned Mahmud’s regard; on the other, he took every opportunity to meet with Prithvi Raj and urge him to avenge Ghori’s betrayal and daily insults.

The two got an opportunity when Ghori announced an archery competition. Chand Bardai told Ghori that Prithviraj was so skilled an archer, that he could take aim based only on sound, and did not even need to look at his target. Ghori disdained to believe this; the courtiers guffawed and taunted Chand Bardai, asking how a blind man could possibly shoot arrows. In the spirit of their usual barbaric mockery, they brought the blind and hapless Prithvi Raj out to the field. Pressing a bow and arrows into his hand, they taunted him to take aim. Chand Bardai told Ghori that this taunting would avail nothing, for Prithvi Raj would never do as some sundry courtiers bade him do. He said that Prithvi Raj, as an anointed king, would not accept orders from anyone other than another king. His ego thus massaged, and in the spirit of the occasion, Mahmud Ghori agreed to personally give Prithvi Raj the order to shoot.

Thus, Chand Bardai provided Prithvi Raj with an aural indication of where Ghori was seated. He gave Prithvi Raj one further indication of the same, by composing a couplet on the spot and reciting the same in Prithvi Raj’s hearing. The couplet, composed in a language understood only by Prithvi Raj went thus:

“Char bans, chaubis gaj, angul ashta praman,
Ete pai hai Sultan, (Taa Upar hai Sultan),
ab mat chuko hey Chauhan.”
(Ten measures ahead of you and twenty four feet away, is seated the Sultan. Do not miss him now, Chauhan).

Ghori then ordered Prithvi Raj to shoot. Prithvi Raj turned in the direction from where he heard Ghori speak, and, taking aim based only on the voice and on Chand Bardai’s couplet, he sent an arrow racing to Ghori’s throat. Ghori was thus struck dead by Prithvi Raj. Naturally, after this deed, Prithvi Raj was killed by Mahmud’s courtiers. (portions of the text are from wikipedia)

“shabd-bheydi band kala” was the common link between two epics that form a part of mythology and an instance from India’s medieval history which is a fact. “shabd-bheydi band kala” is probably a small part of what the ancients knew about the craft of war and the art of living. Today we remember nothing of what they knew though we say we live in the age of information. Our traditional education and knowledge have been forgotten and we have submitted to the western style of education which I think might cover just a fraction of what the ancients knew.