N Arhe
For someone like me, a Christian, who hardly knows the true meaning of Christianity or practicing it religiously, It came as a pleasant surprise when during an interaction with a Landlord in South Delhi; the first thing that came to my mind was one of the famous ten commandments from the Bible “Love thy Neighbor as Thyself” It sure sounds to be an impossible thing to do, especially, when you had neighbours who hate each other so much, like, my landlord and his immediate neighbour...
It happened a few months ago when I was hunting for a house. I wanted it in a particular South Delhi area. So, by hook or crook I had to find it and soon! Going through the ordeal of house hunting, I thought I could have written a book about meeting different Landlords and property dealers. Some asked funny questions that made me laugh; some questions were so irritating I just had to walk away without even looking at their face forget their rooms. But, I was not prepared for what happened after I took the house of my choice finally. The land lord was a lean man about 60years old. He made it clear from the start that he was only interested in money. I enquired about the dos and don’ts, to which he replied, “As long as you pay my rent on time, you can do whatever you want. You have a separate entrance, come and go whenever you feel like”.
I was excited; this was by far the most liberal landlord I had come across in Delhi. As I was walking away, he called me back, “oh, I forgot to mention to you, my only request to you is, “please do not buy anything from the shop next door”. I wanted to laugh out aloud, when he interrupted, “I am serious”. The look on his face told me I should hurry off.
The next day we shifted in. We were busy cleaning up the house. When suddenly I realized we needed soap. I sent the young boy in my house to get it from the nearest shop. He did. The next thing I heard someone pressing on the door bell, I rushed out to see this angry old Landlord of mine. Red faced, he shouted, “I warned you not to buy anything from the shop next door and your boy just bought something from there”. I was stunned. First, this was only my second encounter with my new Landlord. Secondly, I thought I had it. I had already paid him the advance and signed the contract for one year. I had to apologize profusely, promising him it will never, ever happen again.
That incident had kept me thinking for a long time. For one, my Landlord and his neighbour are about the same age. They were both Sindhis. They both had identical buildings. They both had a shop, practically selling the same stuff. On one occasion I asked my Landlord why, do you hate your neighbor so much? He replied, “because of him I had lost 20 Lakh of rupees”. I will never know the other side of the story.
What amazes me most is the fact that, both my landlord and his neighbour, takes full charge of their shops. They both sat outside their respective shops and kept a hawk eye on the other shop. Who was entering whose shop, who was buying what? The amusement did not stop there. I guess they had both decided that, as long as they were alive, they will continue to kick each other’s back. It was a pity because the hatred was spreading. Their children and their grandchildren looked through each other.
Sometimes, I wondered if it were some other people they might have opted getting rid of each other’s neighbourhood. But, in their case I did not see that happening, they had made sure they will fight each other for generations to come.
When i narrated this tale of two neighbours to a friend from Delhi, she listened to me attentively until I finished my story and coolly replied “Haven’t you ever heard of the Wiseman’s observation “To hate thy neighbour is also a form of love”
Hmmm, my observation was definitely not as wise as the Wiseman; I had to comfort myself - I am a (wise) woman…
(The writer is Editor East Wind)
