Raksha Bandhan

Today, HR introduced me to the Hindu rite of Raksha Bandhan.  It is observed on the last day of the Hindu lunar calendar month of Shraavana, which typically falls in August, and is the annual ritual of a sister tying a thread, talisman, or amulet (rakhi) around the wrist of her brother as a form of protection.  The ritual has a mutual effect as the brother is ritually invested with a share of the responsibility of his sister’s protection and care.  The name, “Raksha Bandhan” comes from Sanskrit and literally means, “the bond of protection, obligation, or care.”

The reason the learning of this rite means so much to me is that HR said that she’d like to observe it with me this year.  Over the last couple of years, we have grown increasingly close, sharing life, both its joy and its sadness.  Our bond has transcended work to something more intimate and loving.  We can talk freely and share things that we might not share with other people.  I trust her, I care for her, and I’m fiercely loyal when it comes to protecting her.  She has become a little sister to me, and we treat each other like family, both picking on each other and depending on each other.  So, it meant the world that she thinks so much of me that she wanted to observe a rite meant for sisters and brothers.

There is a concept of “voluntary kin relations,” which are for men and women who are not blood or marital relatives, but can become family through the ritual of Raksha Bandhan.  Originally intended to cut across caste, class, and even Hindu/Muslim lines; it is now also used to cut across cultures.