Tukang kasut

'Anak pak cik masih menuntut..'

Tutur lembut si tukang kasut

'Nun jauh di daerah Besut...'

Sambung dia terbatuk semput

'Sudah lama dia mengikat perut.

Baru semalam, dia menyebut.'

'Apa jurusnya anak pak cik menuntut?'

Aku pun bertanya apa yang patut.

Hajat di hati menembus laut, mengali riwayat si tukang kasut.

'Jurusnya tentang pahitnya hidup...'

Si tukang kasut mulai berkerut.

Dia menjahit tapak tercabut,

Di hujung mulut tertancap rokok.

'Anak pula bagaimana hidup?'

Sudah bekerja atau masih menuntut?'

Soal balas si tukang kasut.

Menutup soal mengubah tajuk.

'Saya baru habis menuntut..

Atau sepatutnya bukan dipanggil menuntut

Kerana hidup sekadar seronok-seronok

Belajarnya tak masuk, ilmunya diperuk...'

Angin bertiup, awan membusut

Langit mendung tanda nak ribut...

'Sudah disambung apa yang tercabut.'

'Kertas merah yang kerunyuk

Hanya sehelai saya tuntut.'

'Terima kasih anak menghantar kasut

Dapat hasilnya mengisi perut.'

'Sama-sama si tukang kasut.'

Tuturku perlahan bernada lembut.

'Semoga berjaya di dalam hidup

Jangan pernah berhenti menuntut!'

Balas ringkas si tukang kasut.

Aku akur, hanya mengangguk.

Aku tinggalkan si tukang kasut,

Duduk seorang di tepi sudut.

-Tamat-

A riddle.

Lately, I have been thinking a lot of Neon Genesis Evangelion. Something is bothering my mind.

One day, when I was reading a book on Christianity, I found the phrase,'Eli, Eli lama Sabachtani.'

This phrase is not alien to me. I have known about this phrase a long time before I purchased my first Bible.

For your information, this is the phrase quoted from Jesus Christ during the event of crucifixion. It means, 'My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?'

When I heard for the first time of this phrase, it is included in the lyrics of a System of A Down song, Chop Suey. Amazed with the magically constructed lyrics, I made a research on it and found this phrase embedded in Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34.

5 years later, I watched Neon Genesis Evangelion (NGE).

Whilst I was watching the anime, I was disturbed with lack of attention from Ikari Shinji's father, Ikari Gendo. He never show any emotion towards his son even after Shinji saved humanity from utter destruction.

Ok. Now this is the real matter.

What if we substituted Shinji as the Son of God, and Ikari Gendo as God the Father.

Does this ring a bell?

Jesus was crucified even after his greatest effort to spread the Word of God. His frustration of the silence from his Father was finally revealed at the Cross.

It is quite similar with Shinji's situation. However, both Shinji and Jesus never gave up and persisted on completing the missions ordered by their Fathers.

It is true that NGE is full with Judaeo-Christian references, but this kind of similarity is quite shocking to me. It is not superficially done by naming the characters and other props with religious identity. It is done by using the whole plot as the medium to convey the real story behind it.

Others characters can be seen as similar with their Biblical counterparts but as I am not an expert with the history of Christianity, I think it will be better for me to stop here.

Can I say that NGE is a complete retelling of the story of Jesus Christ using modern technology and robotic era as a disguise?

. . . . . . . . . .

Watching anime as a way to learn about other way of thinking and philosophy. Cool isn't it?

*I'm not sorry for my Engrish. Practice makes perfect.

Buku-buku Tahun 2014

1. From Socrates to Sartre - T.A Levine

2. The Theologico-Political Treatise and The Political Treatise - Benedict de Spinoza

3. After Dark - Haruki Murakami

4. Animal Farm - George Orwell

5. The Other Side of the Coin - Aiman Azlan & Ameen Misran

6. How to Win Friends & Influence People - Dale Carnegie

7. Man and His Symbols - Carl Gustav Jung

8. The Way of Zen - Alan Watts

9. Japanese Death Poems - Yoel Hoffman

10. Weapon and Fighting Techniques of Samurai Warrior -  Thomas D. Conlan

11. The Philosophy of Aristotle - Signet Classics

12. The Story of Philosophy - Will Durant

13. The Din-i-Ilahi or The Religion of Akbar - Makhanlal Choudury

14. Velayat-e Faqeeh - Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini

15. The Tale of Murasaki - Liza Dalby

16. The Guide - R.K Narayan

17. Interpreter of Maladies - Jhumpa Lahiri

18. Konsep Syariah Dalam Sistem Perbankan Islam - BIRT Sdn Bhd

19. The Japanese Mind - Davies/Ikeno

20. Pertembungan Tamadun dan Pembentukan Semula Orde Dunia - Samuel P. Huntington