The worst sin is the refusal to confront one’s inner demons. Redemption lies in accepting those demons and learning to grapple with them. This is the fundamental theme of Khaled Hosseini’s celebrated novel, The Kite Runner . “... a boy who won’t stand up for himself becomes a man who won’t stand up to anything.” Rahim Khan, one of the characters, tells Amir the protagonist. Rahim was actually quoting the words of Amir’s father who had assessed his son when the latter was a boy. Amir never stood up for himself because there was always Hassan, his childhood friend, to stand up for him. Hassan had no inner demons shelved away neatly in any inner recess of his consciousness. He confronted life as it presented itself to him. When it was necessary to fight bullies, he did so bravely. He did the fighting on behalf of Amir too. But Amir betrayed him. Amir surrendered to the demon of cowardice. Every surrender to the inner demons leaves one with guilt. Amir’s father
Cerebrate and Celebrate