I was sitting in a partly open coffee shop yesterday drinking a cup of coffee when my thoughts were disturbed by this woman who was trying to shoo a couple of dogs away who were sitting under her table.
The dogs showed attitude and turned a dead ear to her requests. She continued doggedly to shoo them away. I could see the frustration in her eyes. She looked at me as if to say: why can’t these dogs allow me to eat my masala dosa in peace? The owner of the restaurant who is also the waiter was busy reading the newspaper absorbed fully in some scam to be able to see or hear anything. A Hindu priest who is sitting a few tables away and had been watching the going-on for some time now could no longer keep quiet: Please don’t talk to him in Konkani; they will not hear you will not listen to you as they are Brahim dogs. He said a few words to them in Sanskrit (i think) and amazingly the dogs got up and walked away from the restaurant. Until now I had no idea the caste system extended to dogs. No, said the priest it goes on and on and includes everything - living and dead. No respectable cabbage would not like to be called a cauliflower said George Bernard Shaw after he lifted it from one of our books on religion. As for fruit our own Chief Minister says he prefers the Mankurad to the Alfonso mango. Is the Mankurad a Kshatriya and Alfonso a Brahim respectively? As we are self conscious beings and capable of doing Vipassana meditation and we are aware we can solve the problem of discrimination. We can manage our prejudices and keep them under control. No hope however for the poor fruit and vegetables, said the Brahmin priest sadly.