Stories tell that Eve was the first woman to walk the Earth. Some say it was Pandora. Either way, Eve and Pandora are credited with the sin of curiosity, and thereby bringing to Earth all the ills that ail it.
Perhaps, the genesis of the ills that ail women lies in the power of these tales?
Do take a look at a few stories that have the power of determining human behavior.
- Across the Himalayas there’s a man-made line. Stories tell us that this side of the line makes you Indian. And that side makes you the enemy. People have died on either side, because of this story.
- The possession of rag, processed to a certain specification of cotton, balsam and gelatin, combined with a specific ink and design can define you – as either prince, or pauper. (Currency notes are not really made of paper. They are made of cotton fiber).
- A piece of this rag which has the number 500 printed on it is more valuable than a similar piece of rag with the number 100 printed on it.
- You take great pride in being an Indian, Russian, Dane or Dodo because of a man-given name to the geography that you were born in.
- White is the colour purity. Black is the colour of evil.
- Starve a fever, feed a cold
- Bunnies love carrot
The fables go on and on. They are as old as time and as numerous as sand in the seas. And, their power is irrefutable.
Empires have been built on the basis of these. Businesses have flourished. Men and women have risen to the highest offices and homes have been built or broken on the basis of stories.
For us story-tellers, it is imperative that we stay close to the truth. We carry with us the responsibility of making or breaking reputations with the power of the stories we tell.
It is a responsibility that is as sacred as that of a doctor with a scalpel or a soldier with a rifle.
