Violent threats of Bengali mothers

If you are a Bengali or at least if your mom is Bengali you would know what I am talking about. Disciplining the kids is a routine that every mother has to perform all across the world and despite their wish to refrain from reprimanding the child they need to do it once in a while. But Bengali mothers take this disciplining-the-kid business to a whole new level.

Some common threats (all collected from real experiences)

1. Aj tor pa/haat bhenge debo

 Translates to “Today I will break your legs/hands.”

2. Mere rokto ber kore debo

 Translates to “I’ll punch you till you bleed.”

3. Ei lathi-ta tor pithe bhangbo

 Translates to “I’ll break this rod on your back.”

4. Tule achhar marbo

 Translates to “I’ll pick you up and smash you down to the ground.”

5. Chabke chhal chhariye debo

 Translates to “I’ll whip you and skin you.”

6. Matha phatiye debo

 Translates to “I’ll break your head”

7. Kaan tene chhire debo

 Translates to “I’ll box your ears and rip them off.”

All the threats are replete with promises of gory violence. It’s not that the kids are born with tendencies of destruction in this part of the world…nor are the mothers particularly cruel is this part of the world…but the mothers just love to use sanguine threats to scare the errant child.

I often interrupted my mommy while she was fervently hurling threats at me with requests for clarification. She often used the fourth threat on the list and I responded with “Smash me down? From what height?” or “But you never really pick me up…I think I’d like that.” Her reactions ranged from instant nullification of anger to instant conversion of anger to blind rage.

Mothers never can implement such threats on their kids…they know it, the indulgent fathers know it, even the kids know it. Then why do they dish out threats they don’t intend to carry out?

Actually in a subtle and sure way a lesson has been handed down for generations…limit the animal in you to the realm of anticipation and imagination and express only the delicate nurturer in you to the real world.