Fate

Today, we left Badami and headed to Hospet. On our way to Hospet, we stopped at Aihole and looked at more temples. I am still trying to digest everything I see at the temples. Every time I enter a temple, I feel overwhelmed by all the imagery and trying to decipher what it is I see. Even without a full understanding of everything I see, I still marvel that these ancient creations are still standing and more than that, still significant to people today. A lot of our ancient relics, while still standing, are not necessarily applicable to people today. But these temples are still utilized by Hindus and the stories conveyed in the temples are still told today and passed down to children.

While we were in Aihole, we met a ton of children as usual. Whenever there are children, there are always more boys than girls, something I find quite interesting. One of the few girls we saw proceeded to tell Dr. Rao that she had a friend a little taller than her that just got married and that she would soon be married. She was seven and a half, maybe eight years old. While the relationship isn’t consummated until they both reach puberty, it is crazy to think that the fate of these kids is mapped out by the age of eight. I guess one could say that their fate was sealed by being born into poverty in the Indian countryside.