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There are two types of
religion: one which enables us to see the divine in others and the other which
is about power, bullying, self-delusion, expediency and psychological
consolations. What we usually see around
us is the latter type. Such religion
destroys the genuine religion. M P Baby’s
novel, The Snake Crucified, shows us both the types with a brilliant plot.
Chacko is a Pulaya (low
caste) Roman Catholic living in Karuvankode, a primitive village in
Kerala. Though he is Catholic
officially, Chacko practises the ancient religion of his caste. He is a sorcerer and there is a snake which
helps him in sorcery. The snake reveals
the truths to him. The snake is a kind
of god for him. He does not hesitate to
give the Holy Communion (the sacred bread and wine from the church) to his
snake.
It is Father Sebastian
Maliyekkal who assists Chacko to give the Communion to the snake. Father Sebastian is an “oversexed” priest who
enjoys sexual relationships with nuns as well as lay women. He has a motive in assisting Chacko to fulfil
his desire to give the Communion to the snake.
He will get Chacko’s help in return when he needs it.
Father Sebastian is a
popular Charismatic preacher and counsellor too. He has led hundreds of Charismatic retreats,
healed the sick, performed miracles in the name of Jesus, and counselled
hundreds of people to sound health of body and mind. But there is a devil within him. Chacko, on the other hand, is a more honest
human being. His religion may be
primitive and serpentine but his spirituality is genuine: he won’t harm anyone,
he won’t do what his conscience knows is wrong.
Sister Ajitha cannot
accept Chacko’s religion. She asks
Chacko to mend his ways and be a good Christian. She will, however, come to know more shocking
secrets about Father Sebastian soon which will cost her her very life. The plot moves to a climax of many murders.
Davis Jacob, Chacko’s son
who is also a prominent journalist, along with his fiancée Nisha, is on an
investigation to find out who killed his father and what led to his mother’s
death. Davis and Nisha move in and out
of the narrative seamlessly bringing the various elements and characters
together into a gripping narrative.
The plot is immensely
captivating. However, the novel suffers
from a very serious drawback. The
language is atrocious. There are too
many grammatical and spelling mistakes and occasionally the reader is left
baffled by what the sentences mean. There
are many infelicitous expressions too. Taste a sample:
“But she (Sister Ajitha) used her step strong to Father Sebastian. She decided to resist the bond of her orbit….
He bathed in an ocean of sweat…. Face went perfect grotesque. Eyes were pools
death swam in.”
A good editor would have
made the novel really brilliant.
PS. The novel was given to me for reading by a colleague of
mine who is a friend of the author.
Truly eligible opinion.....
ReplyDeleteDear respected sir...
ReplyDeleteYour review on my humble work is really heartwarming. In spite of having been written in a language of mediocre quality, it finds its way directly into the hands of people like you.Recw
Best wishes to you.
Delete