Son of the Soil

Kishan picked up a handful of the brown soil and put it across his forehead with great reverence and pride. He then turned around quickly and attacked his opponent, with a quick flick of his right foot swinging in an arc under his opponent's legs, making the giant of the man collapse in a heap on the ground. The huge wrestler had not seen it coming and the element of surprise was to the great advantage of Kishan. Before the man could collect himself and get up, Kishan took two steps back and ena straight at his opponent, butting him in the ribs with his head. The opponent grunted in pain and tried to catch hold of Kishan's neck. But Kishan ducked, straightened himself and jumped high, coming down with his left knee bent, crashing with the bent knee into the man's head.

The crowd cheered as Kishan efficiently put the man out of consciousness. The man had picked up the fight. Kishan was only fighting back to defend himself. But, when the man had called him a boy from the mud, he had lost his cool. It wasn't mud, he had said. It was the soil of his mother earth and he was the son of the soil. A farmer's son, Kishan was a well behaved boy. While the youth in the neighborhood were busy enjoying their lives, Kishan used to toil hard I'm hia father's farm in the mornings and attended night college in late evenings. He had decided to get a degree in agricultural science. Kishan got up, dusted himself and walked away, ignoring the unconscious man who had insulted his means of livelihood and the crowd that was there for the free entertainment. 

Years later, Kishan had turned around the village, by his modern techniques of farming that he had learnt in college. The village had become an ideal center for good farming techniques, and people used to come from far and wide to understand how the villagers had managed that. One day, Kishan was teaching a batch of youngsters about various methods of irrigation, when a big Jeep Compass landed in the village. The driver asked some villagers for directions, and the Jeep drove and slowly halted near Kishan's farm. Kishan, himself a rich and famous farmer now, was used to seeing such vehicles as often people from various strata used to visit him for advice. The driver got down and ran to open the back side door. As the door opened, a large man in his late forties stepped out, followed by a younger lad. He walked to Kishan and stood in front unsure of what to do. Kishan stood up, and thrust his hand forward for a shake.

The man meekly shook hands with Kishan, keeping an arms distance, warily. Kishan looked at the man, trying to remember where he had seen him before. The man smiled sheepishly and said "Mr. Kishan, I am sure you don't remember me. A long time ago, you had beaten me unconscious, because I had insulted this divine soil by calling it mud. I am here to thank you." It all came back to Kishan as the man was talking; but Kishan couldn't understand why the man would thank him for a beating. He looked puzzled at the man. The man continued talking, "After that day, I went back home and realised the value of this soil. I started helping my father with the upkeep of his farms. I then grew an orchard of mangoes. I went abroad and got special training in organic farming.

Today, I am the world leader in organic mango farming. I have been hearing a lot about you, reading in the newspapers and also watching your interviews on TV. I wanted to come and thank you for turning my life around; but did not have the courage to do so. This is my son, Karan. He has just passed his twelfth standard and I want him to continue on your footsteps. So, today I brought him to meet you, so he could meet the man who made his father. Please give him your blessings," saying so, the man beckoned his son. As soon as the son bent to touch Kishan's feet, Kishan stopped him and hugged him. Kishan had tears of satisfaction in his eyes. His soil had saved yet another life from going haywire. He quickly touched the ground, picked a fistful of soil and rubbed it on Karan's forehead. 

The man looked on happily, as his son got mother earth's blessings, turning him into a son of the brown soil!