In
the next article, Ritika Alexander talks about how the power of love can work
miracles in our lives:
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not
envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not
self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does
not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always
trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails” -1 Corinthians 13:4.
This four letter word has more depth than
the Pacific Ocean and has had plays, songs and stories written on it more than
anything else in the world. Khaled Hosseini set out to write an extraordinary love story- 'A Thousand Splendid Suns'.
This is the tale of Mariam, a fifteen year
old girl who is forced to marry Rasheed. Nearly two decades later, a friendship
grows between her and a local teenager, Laila, as strong as the ties between
mother and daughter. When the Taliban takes over, life becomes a desperate
struggle against starvation, brutality and fear.
Love in its various forms acts as a major
facilitator of interpersonal relationships and, owing to its importance as a
genre, is one of the most common themes in the creative arts. Such is the work
of Hosseini in this literary endeavor. What keeps this novel vivid and
irresistible is his eye for the textures of daily life and his ability to
portray a full range of human emotions.
Love is such an emotion capitalized in the
novel. ‘A thousand splendid suns’ is a narrative that highlights the plight of
Afghan women and their fate. But it is also a heartfelt saga that encompasses romance
and melodrama, personal and political intrigue.
Love is very often conformed to the
Shakespearean cliché Romeo and Juliet or even violins playing in the background
if taken the Indian movies perspective. What we miss out on is the love that is
found between anything with a soul like two siblings, two friends or as in the
case of A Thousand Splendid Suns, the soul-stirring connection between two
victimized women.
“Mariam was five years old when she first heard
the word ‘harami-illegitimate’ from her nana only because her nana’s precious
china slipped from Mariam’s fingers and shattered on the floor.”
Mariam only received such reactions from
her mom filled with loathing and who never failed to remind her every day that
she was unwanted. It was true such violent streaks bore roots in her nana when Mariam’s
father, Jalil, abandoned them. Since then Mariam is adored once a week by her
father whom she has to share with nine other legitimate children she is unfamiliar
with. Even after the ungodly suicide of her nana, her father had little to say
while his platoon of wives refused to have her in the house and so married her
off to an elderly widower. Such is the childhood of Mariam whose womanhood also
deteriorates into endurance when subject to cruelty from Rasheed.
In a parallel universe, Laila is a
beautiful and intelligent girl coming from a family in which the father is
university-educated and a teacher. Compared to Mariam, Laila "had a much
more fulfilling relationship with her father, her girlfriends and her childhood
friend, Tariq.” But her life suddenly turns topsy-turvy when she finds herself
orphaned and married to Rasheed, no questions asked.
Mariam and Laila end up on the same
doorstep but under very different circumstances where Mariam was unloved and
abandoned while Laila was loved but orphaned.
This
created initial feeling of resentment in Mariam who "felt her territory
infringed upon" and thought history was repeating itself when old fears of
being unwanted resurfaced, her prolonged history with abandonment to be blamed.
But
like Mariam, who was unable to bear children, Laila too disappoints Rasheed
when she gives birth to a daughter and becomes a target for his cruelty.
“And
in the fleeting wordless exchange with Mariam, Laila knew that they were not
enemies any longer.”
Laila and Mariam thereon developed a
rapport making them inseparable, all due to Mariam's childlessness and the
struggles and abuse they both face during the marriage.
Love in this context maybe understood as
part of a survival instinct, a function to keep human beings together against
menace. The unhappy household only created the conditions for the birth of a
friendship so strong, a union as close as any marriage.
Mariam’s killing of Rasheed calls for severe
punishment which Mariam takes upon herself to steer any attention on Laila away
and in a way fulfils her duty as an alternative doting mother to Laila. Mariam’s
selflessness to provide a better life for Laila laid the foundation for the
ultimate sacrifice ever made in the history of love. Such is the power of love,
tragic and heart-breaking yet so touching you would want to be a statue to not
be moved by this story.
Love can move people to act in unexpected
ways and lead them to overcome the most daunting obstacles with startling
heroism.
In Titanic Jack wishes Rose to move on with
her life. Similarly Laila remains indebted to the memory of Mariam but moves on
with her life just how Mariam would have wanted her too. Laila later becomes a
teacher and settles down with Tariq making a life for herself not letting
Mariam’s sacrifice go in vain.
‘But the naming game for her unborn child
involved only male names. Because if it’s a girl Laila has already named her.”
Love may not be the first thing that comes
to mind when you consider the war-ravaged landscape of Afghanistan. But that is
the emotion-powerful and infinitely patient that suffuses the pages. This is a
novel that bears testament to the power of love. A riveting read that explores
sacrifices necessary to sustain hope and the power of love that can jerk tears
from even the coldest of hearts.
In Hosseini’s words -“I couldn’t think of a
more convincing idea than that of a mother’s love, for no love surpasses that of
a mother’s. Every other topic paled in comparison. This is the labour of my
love and I hope it doesn’t sound too pretentious if I say that I think of it as
my modest tribute to the genre love whose power can move mountains and work
wonders.”
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