Les Misérables: from misery to mercy

/in /by

Last week, millions of devout Hindus made their pilgrimage to the Kumbh Mela, keen to wash their sins away and receive forgiveness and redemption, striving to gain these somehow. Also last week, I went to see Les Miserables. Having seen the play a few years ago, the film just added to my appreciation of the key themes of forgiveness, grace and redemption.

In 1988, Alexander Welsh, in Opening and Closing Les Misérables, describes Victor Hugo’s novel as: “from one end to the other, in its entirety and details a progress from evil to good, from injustice to justice, from falsehood to truth, from night to day, from appetite to conscience, from corruption to life; from bestiality to duty, from hell to heaven, from nothingness to God…”

Those words echo one of the most popular mantras of Hinduism, written some 4,000 years ago and recited by millions today:

Asato maa sad-gamaya

Tamaso maa jyotir-gamaya

Mrityor-maa-mitan gamaya

(Lead us from Untruth to Truth, from Darkness to Light, from Death to Immortality)

Does Les Mis provide us with the answer to this eternal desire held by most of us?

While the story has many plots, I want to focus on how the two protagonists respond to forgiveness, grace and redemption.  Both are given the same offer through the different situations they find themselves in. Jean Valjean, an ex-convict, is offered forgiveness, which he does not, at a human level, deserve. He changes his ways in response to the grace shown to him by Bishop Myriel. In contrast, Inspector Javert, when made a similar offer, cannot reconcile it within his moral grid. Though not a convict, he continues his life hounded by guilt and his unwillingness to soften his heart, refusing to accept the free gift offered to him.

It reminded me very poignantly that this is the reality I faced many years ago, as I believe we all do at some point in our lives. As we approach Easter, we are reminded of our debt paid, once and for all, by the only One who is able to; Jesus, our Sanatan Sat Guru. The offer is available to all of us, but the choice is ours to make: will we choose like Javert or like Valjean? That choice will direct the rest of our lives.

Deepak Mahtani