Impatience is not a Virtue

The image on the right is probably disturbing for some and it very well should be. The tragedy that struck in Northern India at the Naina Devi Temple. Of the 3,000 devotees that were there at the temple this past weekend for a festival, approximately 145 were trampled to death when rumors of an imminent or approaching landslide caused a panic among the lines of devotees and led to a mass rush to leave that ended up with many women and children laying dead on the path leading up the mountain to the temple. I wish I could say that this was a rare occasion in India but unfortunately it isn't. It seems that there isn't even one year where a tragedy of this sort occurs.

Over the past several years, there have been similar incidents all across India, usually at temples or during holy occasions that have led to deaths ranging from anywhere from a dozen to hundreds. The tragedy at the Naina Devi temple is definitely one of the worst in recent years but certainly nothing like the incident back in 2005 where 258 people were crushed in Wai, India during a similar religious gathering. A group close to the actual idols fell to the floor and in the rush of the others in the back of the line to get forward, there was a surge of people that ended up crushing those who had fallen to the floor. Despite the cries and pleas for help, the crowd continued forward until finally there was a clear cut call to stop and render assistance to those who fell to the floor. By then it was too late for many of them.

Whether for religious fervor or for getting free saris being handed out by politicians at a rally (which led to the death of 21 women back in 2004 in Lucknow) there have been and will continue to be trampling deaths in India. Part of the problem is that the population is so large and most of the places that these deaths have occured are not built or designed with that many people in mind. I remember going to Mahalaxmi Temple in Bombay and being pressed up against a sea of humanity and being continually shoved from behind despite the fact that even an idiot could see that the temple priests were waiting for a group within the inner sanctum to exit so that there could be less overcrowding. I'm sure similar things happened at the Naina Devi temple this past weekend but what happens is that some, in their mad rush to seek the blessings of priests and the Gods themselves, push and shove thinking that they'll get there faster and this reveals the one truth about us Indians. We are among the most impatient people in the world.

Now before I get dozens of e-mails calling me a biased American or a foolish ABCD who knows nothing, I give you some pieces of evidence. Drive anywhere in India and you'll see people stopped at traffic lights in at least ten lanes of traffic despite the fact that there is only two marked lanes in that particular direction. Why? Because to get ahead of the cars the guys on motorcycles and scooters will cut to get to the front. The handcart-wallas will continue moving forward to get ahead of them. In between will be people walking to get to where they need to go and suddenly you have a mass that resembles traffic but looks more like the start of the Boston Marathon. Or what about anywhere where you are required to line up? I can't count the number of times I've been at Bombay airport and have been standing patiently in line only to have a number of people start pushing me from behind despite the fact that I can't go anywhere.

What's the reason? Do we all think that the flight is suddenly going to take off without us? We've checked in, they have us as being checked in so unless we don't show up at all at the departure time, they won't take off without us. Plus they will have to remove our luggage as a safety precaution so it isn't like they're going to suddenly leave you behind. What about at temples where so many deaths have occurred? Is God suddenly going to decide that He's done for the day and stop blessing? God is everywhere and so that omnipotence should provide some comfort that you will get blessings now that you're in line. Just wait for five minutes and you'll get what you're waiting for.

People provide arguements all the time in an attempt to rationalize why these sorts of incidents seem to happen in India so often. The systems aren't designed to handle the crowds; there is inadequate direction from the police; people are ignorant. All of those reasons or none of them may be true but it basically boils down to the fact that we are impatient as a people. No sooner the light turns green the person behind you begins to honk their horn in an attempt to get people to move faster. I've had relatives visit from India and one of the first comments they make is that traffic here in the States is quiet and quite well-mannered. I've sat in traffic before and generally unless there has been some sort or really stupid act committed (i.e., nearly causing an accident) a horn is rarely heard. Sure it happens in big cities but it's generally when someone delays moving for an inordinate amount of time. In India it starts in anticipation of the light turning green.

I don't know what the solution would be to prevent this sort of thing but some things remain clear; at a place like the Naina Devi temple, there was only one narrow path leading to and from the temple. There was only one path to go up and one path to go down and as a result, the crowd was very thick and when people began panicing and began running down the hilltop path shouting about a landslide, there was no place for some people to go. People at the top were rushing to get down and people at the back were in a fervor to get to the top and get their blessings. The poor people in the center were crushed as a result. Better organization may help as well as creating better paths in such popular temples. But the bottom line is that if we Indians learn to be a little more patient, then perhaps we can avoid such tragedies in the future.