William Dalrymple's Nine Lives: In Search of Essay

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William Dalrymple's Nine Lives: In Search Of The Sacred In Modern India

William Dalrymple's book Nine Lives: In Search of the Sacred in Modern India (2011) is a unique collection of authentic stories. While they all provide valuable information and insight when it comes to how people keep sacredness alive in the face of modernization in India, there is not space to discuss or address all of them here. Instead, there will be two specific stories analyzed -- the nun's tale and the monk's tale -- both of which help explain part of what takes place in India in the less common religions. Many of these smaller religions are dying out, with fewer adherents every year. Even those who hold to the old ways and the smaller religions are changing, and they are not always as committed to following their religions the way they would have in the past.

That has become a serious issue for India in the present day, with modernization taking its toll on young and old alike. Dalrymple focuses on letting the people in his book tell their stories in their own voices, instead of attempting to take what they have said and put his own feelings and opinions into it. He also does not talk about his own spiritual journey, quest, or affiliation, which provides much more credibility to his work.

Discussed here will be the two tales -- the nun and the monk -- and the ways in which they are similar and different. Gender and different types of religious beliefs are the two most notable differences between the tales, and those are the two areas that will be focused on in the following pages.

The Nun's Tale

Prasannamati Mataji comes from a family that has plenty of money and material things (Dalrymple, 4). She does not want for anything of a financial nature, and she is treated well. One would think that this type of life would be a good choice, and something a person would prefer when given the choice between it and poverty, but that is not the case with her. Instead of spending time enjoying the wealth in which her family lives, she finds that she is drawn to the life of the Jain nuns (Dalrymple, 4).

The Jains focus on doing absolutely no harm to anything or anyone on the planet, going so far as to wear masks to avoid breathing in an insect or microbe, and sweeping their feet along the path when they walk so they do not step on a bug or creature of any kind (Cort, 77). This desire to have nothing and harm nothing can be hard to explain to someone who is not drawn to the same kind of life.

There are many traditions Mataji follows, including the ritual of plucking out all of her hair (Dalrymple, 6). That is a sign of her devotion and one of the ways in which she shows how committed she is to the beliefs of the Jain order (Dalrymple, 6). No one else in her family is walking this particular path, but to her it is very important and something about which she feels strongly. She then spends her life wandering with the other Jains, and she is allowed only her whisk, bowl, and robes (Dalrymple, 10).

She does not own any other possessions, because Jains choose to own nothing and do not focus on anything of a material nature (Cort, 77). There are other rituals considered, as well, including one that is designed to allow the person to slowly and ritualistically starve to death. While not common among Jains, it is an acceptable part of their religious practices and something that a number of them will do.

One of Mataji's companions has chosen this path because she is dying from tuberculosis (Dalrymple, 11). She has only a limited time to live, and has chosen to let go of her body and to leave the world on her own terms, instead of waiting for the tuberculosis to take her (Dalrymple, 11). While many people may feel that would make sense, and many would understand why this would be the case with someone who has a terminal illness, there are some who are perfectly healthy and who choose this path also.

Mataji is one of those (Dalrymple, 14). She reveals to Dalrymple that she is going to perform sallekhana, where she will slowly reduce what she eats and drinks until she starves to death (Dalrymple, 15). She is only in her mid-30s, and unlike her friend she is not sick with a terminal illness, but completely healthy (Dalrymple, 15). However, she is also very devoted to the Jains and their beliefs.

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One of the ways she can show that seriousness and devotion is by letting go of everything -- and one of the things a person can choose to let go of is his or her body. The Jains first let go of their home, and they wander the streets (Cort, 78). Then they focus on giving up all of their possessions (Cort, 78). This allows them to travel light and not be burdened with anything from a material standpoint, but the most material thing they can have is their body (Cort, 78). It is the last thing they can give up, which happens when they die.

While many wait to die naturally and spend their lives up until that point following the Jains' requirements, others choose to leave their bodies and this life for what comes next (Cort, 78). There are many ways to do that, but ritualistically the proper way is to slowly reduce food and water intake, which can sometimes be done over a period of years as opposed to a period of days, weeks, or even months (Dalrymple, 16).

Analyzing the Nun's Tale

There are serious concerns and issues to be considered when it comes to the nun's tale, however. To people who are not a part of the Jains or who are not taking any other religion to its extreme, the idea of slowly starving oneself to death may seem frightening or even barbaric in nature. That is something worth addressing, of course, because of the way in which young people like Mataji choose their own deaths. There could be an argument made as to whether this is right or wrong, but those are subjective issues.

What is does show, however, is the darker side of some different types of spirituality. Not all religion and spirituality -- and the practices that come with them -- is about goodness and light. Additionally, the ways in which a person attains goodness and light can also be very different, because there are a myriad of options based on the type of religion or spiritual practice a person choose to follow. It is not possible to say that Mataji is "wrong" in her choice.

Those who think carefully about what she is choosing to do may not understand the choice she has made, though, because it seems that Mataji would have everything to live for. Her family is wealthy, she is young, and she is healthy. She has what millions of people throughout the world strive to have -- youth, wealth, and health. Without those things, many people will say that life has little meaning, but Mataji does not see any meaning in any of those things.

She is seeking meaning in a completely different way, through letting go of any societal trappings that she would normally hold dear and that most people would embrace. The idea that letting go includes her home and material possessions is not something too many people misunderstand, but the idea that letting go includes her body and her life on this planet is something people have trouble grasping. Most people fear death, or at least try to avoid it, and they do not welcome it or try to cause its arrival.

The choice she has made is a deeply spiritual experience, and not one that can be easily understood by those who have not chosen the same or a similar path. It is also related to a similar issue, in that most people who think of nuns think of them more in terms of Christianity and less in terms of Jains. Numerous people throughout the world have not even heard of Jains, and even in India it is not as common as other religions or spiritual practices.

This is important to note, because there are differences of religion that come into play even when people are in close proximity to one another and even when they live in the same area of the world. Because the Jains are a "valid" religion in India, however, Mataji is not seen as doing anything wrong. She is not the only person who has ever chosen this particular spiritual path, whether a Jain or a member of some other type of spiritual practice. Fasting has been a religious practice for centuries.

A second issue….....

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