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Question
Notice these expressions.
‘We bask in your benediction. Our life-spark itself is held in your fist.’
‘This is her day. Let Beena alone wash and wipe the reverent feet. All her life she will remember this honour befalling her on her auspicious day of her marriage.’
- How do they capture the Indian idiom?
- Underline other such expressions.
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Solution
The expressions use the language of blessings, reverence and respect for elders familiar features of Indian social and family life. They also have a heightened, figurative quality: “bask in your benediction” presents a blessing as something one can enjoy, while “life-spark itself is held in your fist” expresses complete dependence. The references to washing revered feet and to an “auspicious day” reflect traditional customs and beliefs. Other expressions to mark should be similar phrases in the story that convey respect, blessings, family relationships or customs.
