Finding Home # 61 “Beloved” (Sarah and Hagar)
Unable to deal with the conflict between Sarah and Hagar, Abraham tells Sarah to “do what is right in her eyes”. Although Abraham has been instructed by God to listen to Sarah’s wishes (this being the version taught to me in my Jewish Torah) he seems not to care when Ishmael his son is banished into the wilderness with his mother Hagar. This competition between the two mothers results in a rift between them since Sarah tries to safeguard the rights of her son Isaac.
The Sarah and Hagar in my painting titled “Beloved” are reunited. In deep embrace they are mere reflections of each other. Being raised Jewish in a Hindu and Muslim India, I grew up having close friendships with Muslims. I cannot but see the similarities we share as human beings not our differences.
But danger lurks, as out of the shadows comes a youth offering a friendly extended hand. Strapped to his chest are bombs that will explode only if he can draw the attention of Sarah and Hagar.
The amputee soldier cannot save them, can he? The camera has spotted the suicide bomber but will he stopped in time and the fragments of Sarah and Hagar’s bodies be put back together again?
Siona Benjamin |
