FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2024
Kajal Chatterjee
Lord Buddha said --- "The tongue like a sharp knife ... Kills without drawing blood".
In this context, let me recall one experience.
Once I approached a toy shop to purchase a gift for a child. The shopkeeper welcomed me with much warmth. Patiently and smilingly he continued to display varieties of items. By trying to know the identity of the recipient regarding his/her sex and age, he suggested toys most suitable for the child. Finally I purchased a toy according to his sane suggestion. Without my asking, he offered me a good discount as well and humbly asked me to visit again.
Since my experience with him was of much pleasure, automatically I got reminded of that very toy shop when the need arose to purchase a gift again after a few months. Again he accorded me a warm welcome and started helping me utmost to select a toy. Now this toy is battery-operated. The shopkeeper asked me whether he would give me a fresh pair of batteries as well and I nodded in affirmative. So he asked a boy to bring two batteries. Now this is a 13-14 year old boy, working as a shop assistant, who was not present during my first visit or I didn't notice him then. Obviously he must be an orphan or hailing from a poor family. So by sacrificing the “luxury” of school, he must have entered this market of labour prematurely. In response, this boy merely asked "Where are the batteries"? No, the shopkeeper didn't beat the child up. He didn't threaten him either. But by importing maximum possible sarcasm, taunt and bitterness in his tone and tongue, the shopkeeper exclaimed "So you don't even know where the batteries are kept, isn't it"! The poor little boy's innocent face promptly got ashen to the extreme as if he had just been lashed with 100 strokes of whip just through tongue! And I got shuddered by noticing the instant transformation of the "gentleman"! As I was leaving the shop, again he turned into his humble "best" and asked me to visit again! As I exited the shop, I vowed "Never never will I visit this shop again".
Now let's move on to a chicken shop where I visit every Sunday morning. During my entry, I noticed that a staff member had just lightened up a beedi after completion of his job at hand. Now the proprietor selected and measured the requisite amount of chicken for me and handed over the meat to that very staff for chopping and processing it. Noticing his puffing of beedi, the proprietor neither rebuked him for doing so while in working hours nor asked him to hurry up. Rather smilingly he politely requested me "Let him complete his beedi"! Instantly my respect towards him multiplied to an infinite extent for acknowledging the human right of a few minutes relaxation-break of his under staff in the midst of such a relentless back-breaking job. As I exited the shop, I vowed "I will continue to visit this shop again and again forever"!
Yes, the humble smiling behaviour of the toy seller to the chicken seller towards me hardly proves anything. They might do it so as to satisfy the customers to ensure future visits. It is nothing but all commerce. But their behaviour with the vulnerable unprotected under staff proves everything.
