12 Days

Just the other day, I browsed through some photos of the Easter Day celebrations in the Philipines. Easter Day, I understand is different from Good Friday. While both are celebrated on the same day, the former commemorates the day when Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. Good Friday commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary. Talking about rising from the dead, it was a mere coincidence perhaps, that a few days after Easter, there was a report in the local daily, The Star about the resurrection of a 65-year-old Lazarus patient in Bukit Mertajam, Penang. The man had ceased breathing on April 14th and declared dead by physicians. Two-and-a-half hours later however, he started breathing again and went on to live for another 12 days. I remember the late Rev. Abhinyana talking about people offering their hair and promising to go vegetarian and so on when on the verge of death. People often bargain with their Gods, sometimes threatening to convert if not given another shot at life. Now, I wonder if to live on for 12 days is enough...

Just have a look at the Easter photos in Phillipines...