I looked down in disbelief as I heard the clanking sound of the broken pendant. The pendant was attached to my Mangalsutra, a wedding chain that symbolized my marriage. I wondered what would happen next but my subconscious asked me to move on. As I placed the broken pendant in a silver bowl, I remembered how my mother-in-law had shown me her pendant long after we lost my father-in-law saying, ‘ I never removed this one as it has always given me strength’. I felt a bit weak but consoled myself by thinking of the numerous times the chain had broken.
We decided to go to the Tata Gold showroom since the gold was authentic and certified. I met the saleswoman who looked at the pendant well and enquired, ‘ Do you want a new one?
I said, ‘ No, can you add a new hook to this pendant?
She shook her head and said, ‘ We do not repair, you will have to get it done by a local goldsmith.
I pleaded saying, ‘ You can take a few days
She said, ‘ We do not repair a gold article created by any other goldsmith’.
We felt we would get it done by the local goldsmith, but we found the whole process annoying, and we failed to trust the concerned. I wore the chain without the pendant for the next six months.
One day during the Navratri, we went back to the Tata Gold shop and we were attended by the regular saleswoman Manjari who was patient as always. Manjari was busy attending to other customers when she called for Upeksha, an intern, to assist us. Upeksha seemed a bit uncomfortable in her sari, which was the uniform for the sales staff. The pleats pinned on her shoulder were heavy and pulled her body into a hump but she sported the best smile in this world. She asked if we needed help. I explained to her that I needed a new pendant and that I was reluctantly exchanging the old one. She offered to help us with a new pendant.
Gold plays an important role in the lives of Indians. It’s bought usually as an investment but every lady loves this yellow metal. It is common for people to judge a person’s wealth by weighing the gold their daughter wears during her wedding. I wasn’t very fond of gold as I had seen my parents struggle to buy some for each of us. My parents believed that a good education was a changemaker. They focused on growing us stronger and self-reliant.
Upeksha showed us numerous pendants but my wedding one seemed the best. Sometimes the pendants were too large and other times it was small. Disheartened I said I would use the pendant that my father gave. On my wedding day, my father gave me a beautiful chain with a pendant featuring the goddess Laxmi in a standing posture.
I treasured this pendant because of its sentimental value. I took it along with me that day thinking that I would add it to my wedding chain if I did not get a spare one. Upeksha said, ‘A sitting Laxmi is the best for Mangalsutra’.
It immediately aroused my superstitions and I asked her, ‘What if I don’t like one?
As I stood there, pondering over which pendant to choose, Upeksha smiled and picked a triangular pendant with Goddess Laxmi seated and sandblasted. It had two small black beads hanging at the end. I finalised it. She asked me to check how it looked on the wedding chain. I dropped the wedding chain on the tray. It looked a bit old. I felt it would be good to have a new one with the new pendant. Upeksha helped me find a new one. She said, ‘ The old one would have to be plucked out of its beads and weighed once again’. I nodded and got ready to go with her to the Company’s goldsmith.
As Upeksha went through the formalities, she weighed the broken pendant and scanned it in three areas to check the carat value. She then guided me to the goldsmith’s studio, which seemed similar to a pathological laboratory with steamers and furnaces and burnt smells. There, we met the chief technician, a jovial plump man with a large paunch that kept him away from the table. Upeksha handed him the wedding chain and the pendant. He laid the pendant on a thick sheet of cotton. With expert hands, he took a gas burner and carefully melted the pendant within seconds. He then skillfully rolled it into a small ball and dropped it into a cold water tub. He wiped his tools with a flourish and smiled at me reassuringly. He then kept the wedding chain in a soft-clothed tray. He moved to a long table and pulled out a pair of pliers and cracked the black beads. The wedding chain looked defeated. Though I felt a moment of doubt, Upeksha’s calm demeanour and the technician’s expertise gave me confidence that I had made the right choice.
The ball of gold was weighed again and scanned in three areas that had been earmarked this time to check the carats. It was pure 22-carat gold. Upeksha went ahead with the formalities of the purchase. She asked me to sit near the sales counter that sported numerous gold bangles. Each time I looked at the gold bangles, they seemed to smile at me. However, I have always been conservative with my purchases. As I gazed at the bangles, a thought crossed my mind — who would use it after me? Would it make a difference to anyone who would get this gold? I looked across to see a young couple seated at the next counter. Manjari was attending to them. She showed a set of four slender bangles for daily wear and a set of designed thick and thin gold bangles to be worn for special occasions.
The lady at the next counter kept asking numerous questions while her husband sat silent. She asked Manjari, “Please wear these on your hands and let me judge them.” Manjari said, ‘These single ones look nice for regular wear.’
The lady said, “What about these special ones, can’t I wear them regularly?” Manjari smiled and said, “You can.”
The lady looked at me and I smiled and shifted my gaze. Upeksha had almost finished with the bills. She now fixed the new pendant to the new gleaning wedding chain with expertise. The lady at the counter quickly put the special occasion bangles on her right hand and raised it to show it to me. She said, ‘Do they suit me?
I said, “It is lovely, buy it.” She smiled and said, “I am exchanging some of my mom’s gifts to buy these.”
While driving back home, I couldn’t help but wonder if I should leave some of my gold for my kids to create joyous moments like this one. As I passed by the hutments, I saw children playing near the garbage while some women tried to clean up the area. However, at the far corner, I saw a woman fully engrossed in creating an altar and placing an idol of Lord Ganesha. She giggled, whispered prayers, and was fully engrossed in her spiritual practice. Her faith attracted her children and friends.
It made me realize that while wealth is important, it is equally important to pass on a legacy of faith to our children to build resilience and overall well-being.
“Money is really worth no more than as it can be used to accomplish the Lord’s work. Life is worth as much as it is spent for the Lord’s service.”― George Muller
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