Sojourn to Mowgli land

How do I make you understand the morning chill in a forest, the view of trees shrouded in mist, the call of a peacock, the tree pie, the cheetal or the sambar. They say a picture is worth a thousand words that maybe true but neither words nor all the pictures we clicked will ever do justice to the true experience we lived. I am at best making a futile attempt to describe the three most amazing days of my life so far.

This is how it all began, two people in similar situation wanting to escape the rut of their existence decided to travel together. One thing leading to another with a lot of ifs and buts three friends landed in a national park late one night with a lot of doubt and apprehension. My mom Meetu had done a great job of fixing accommodation in the vip guest house (that’s Indian for not open to general public).

We had a whole lot of animal sightings from day one, saying that I realize that would still be an understatement. The forest was teaming with life, at every turn every straight we had breath taking views. We lost track of time and every one of us went into a trance like state. Every minute sound was heard every falling leaf was noticed.  

In the night sleep eluded us with the constant rustle outside; noise of a breaking twig brought us out of our deep slumber. There was this constant excitement of another sighting, we were on the edge. Not the one which drains us, not the one which makes us hate every waking second. This seemed like our inner most being was dancing to the tune of jungle.

Then on the last day it finally happened, we spotted the tiger after a near miss. To begin with I came here seeking some sort of happiness what I found was ecstasy. We just sat and watched him, every move every muscle twitch, the yawn and the stretching, if you have not seen the tiger in the wild you have missed something really worthwhile in life. Our sighting lasted for a whole 45 minute and we were still very reluctant to leave the spot even after that.

All I could do on the journey back was close my eyes and relive every moment of it. Ro and Ila were happy high after seeing the tiger in the wild. On the last safari, about four hours after spotting the first tiger, we spotted another tigress. We had a close encounter with 'Big Momma', the tigress who successfully raised five cubs in a single litter and is also the star attraction of the jungle. Truly luck was on our side. After that point nothing else mattered, nothing seemed important, all the pain and sorrow I was carrying within for a long time was washed away. I felt light and appy again. This was my pilgrimage and I paid homage to the mighty beast of the jungle and I was twice blessed on the same day.

Thank ya Meetu Gupta :)

The change

Somewhere while worrying about job security, EMIs, credit card bills, fuel cost, general inflation, deadlines, work stress, ever increasing waistline and ever receding hairline we forget to live, we forget the meaning of love, we forget the sacrifices people around us make to put a smile on our face. We have pretty much replaced real relationships with the virtual ones. Most of us are insecure, lost, and alone. We drive away people, even the ones we claim to love. We all are running, not knowing what we are running from and not knowing towards what.

If you’re trying to justify it to yourself that this article is not about you think again. Getting sloshed (or whatever other myriad form of self-deprecating act you involve in) on every off you get is not living it is just a way to evade all those unanswered issues.

It is sad when any relationship goes down the drain when a person doesn’t have the time for it. The price we are paying for this madness is pretty heavy and the toll it takes on us is pretty grim. Yet we do it. Even people, who seem above it all, fall prey to this killer syndrome of ‘trying’ to make things work, while never quite getting around to doing anything.

This madness has to stop; we need to wake up before it is too late. Before all is lost and our life becomes just another unlived dream and the people that were once a part of it have moved on. We need to take time off every now and then to understand ourselves better, try and live life on our terms, and recognise and appreciate the people around us. Respect them for who they are and understand not everyone is interested in running this mindless rat race. This is a simple change, but it can make a world of difference

Maybe after reading this, if you feel something, remember there is still some amount of humanity left in you and there is still hope. Go back and undo some of your mistakes, make a beginning, probably tonight you might find sleep without the help that glass of scotch…

Cevil ... (yup.... thats the best i cud come up wid )

This one is a couple of months old….

We call ourselves civilized society and it is becoming a trend and very sad indeed that we continue to kill people without a trail, even if he happened to be the most notorious dictator responsible for genocide and oppression. We live in a world which is a little off its rocker.

 What is the difference between Muammar Gaddafi, Osama Bin Laden and the rest of the so called civilised world involved in this war against terror and autocracy, if we just repeat the same shit.

I fail to understand the joy in killing and making a spectacle of it, I fail to understand the rest of the world society which turns a blind eye to it. We have been told that wars are fought for peace (how oxymoronic); all we read about is collateral damage and exodus. We are not civilized; we have just shifted our not so civil activities to god forsaken countries. We support the dictators and autocrats when it suits and remove them when they become more of a liability. That is the same reason for letting the Chinese and Saudi government to continue to rule. Is economic motive the end all, to all our problems and needs?

 If we are truly proclaiming democracy, we should stop trading with China and stop buying oil from 90% of OPECs. We are not ready to do it and more importantly cannot do it. This is getting really contorted. I know and understand that a lot of things we do is not simple and linear. But all I wish for is that deceit and denial was not a part of the non-linear pattern of our thinking process. I am happy that India is holding trail for Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab. That is the only way forward. We live in a society and have the system of law and democracy for a reason. The end of this long drawn process might still be the noose for Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab. It is still better and more humane than lynching and making a spectacle of it. Our country is not perfect we are taking our first baby steps in the right direction.

 It is not simple and naive faith in the system. It is just that the only difference between us and the oppressed is this system, which we simply over look when it becomes inconvenient.  We are the result of 40 million years of evolutionary success and it is time we start behaving the part.

   

Dying to Live

Below is the list of regrets that different people in the final stages of their lives had and shared with a nurse offering palliative care. These five themes seem to be the most common with people in their death bed. I have read a lot of books and articles on dying and living and what struck me about this particular list is the simplicity of it all. I guess that is the beauty of death; it strips all the complexities that we have added to our lives over the years and shows us for who and what we truly are and what we are not. We have nothing to hide behind, nothing with which to protect ourselves from the inevitable truth.

The list:

1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

2. I wish I didn't work so hard.

3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.

5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.

When you read the list and introspect, it will hit you; the mistakes you have made and the lost opportunities and you will also realize none of it has anything to do with material comfort.

The secret then to a happy life is to cherish people around you and more importantly surround yourself with people who will cherish you and help you grow. While you are alive try and get most of it right. Make the dying wish a living promise.






Ref. article: http://www.ariseindiaforum.org/nurse-reveals-the-top-5-regrets-people-make-on-their-deathbed/

coming of age of a politician and other related stuff

I never ever thought I would live to see the day when I can make sense out of statements made by Raj Thackeray. However, the man famous for ludicrous protests that hold Maharastrian cities to ransom has finally made a statement which struck a chord, at least with me. Is this what they call coming of age in politics?? He has stated that Belgaum, Nipani-Karwar, Khanapur and other Marathi-speaking villages in Karnataka should stay in Karnataka and Maharashtra has nothing special to offer them. With the outburst of protests to this statement, there is a high likelihood that he might withdraw it, or threaten the print media for printing them, and try and get them out of Maharashtra.

However, there is a lot of truth in his statement. Maharashtra has nothing to offer the hundreds of kids dying in Melghat due to malnutrition, no solution to the farmer’s problems in Vidarbha region, no solution to the sorry state of state-sponsored education, and other endless problems that plague them. There is no feasible solution forthcoming from the political class. I still don’t understand why, at a periodic interval (read elections), these politicians flare up the issue and people still fall prey to it.

And all those idiots from these border villages who damage public properties never see that their issue will always be only an issue. They are nothing but a trump card and the moment their problem is solved, they will lose all the political patronage they are enjoying. It will be interesting if these people use this to their favour and get additional benefits out of Karnataka govt., but I don’t see that ever happening. Idiots are always idiots; you see there is no cure for that one.

This is the case with all regions that want to break away from one or join with another.  There is no point. We the people are just expendable pawns to the political players. With the king sitting impassively in the centre, the queen and the knights have all the fun.

 Politicians of this state (and the rest of country), have and will always be, spokesmen and minions for the realtors and other so-called Elite. Yes, I am generalising, as the handful of politicians who are worth their salt don’t give a rats-ass as to whether I generalise or not. They will continue to do their work.

So moral of story - Raj is finally a mature politician, there is still some hope after all for the poor Aam Admi and politicians in general suck.

RAGE

Tearing across the skies

The sound of raging battle

roar of a million lions

Heard in unison, the cry of life

Nature wielding her sword of light

Unbridled arrogance, challenging

Destroying human ego

Born from wind and water

Beautiful in its ugly ferocity

Touching the earth

Like a stairway from hell

This is where the elements meet

Like sparks off a clashing sword

Too instantaneous to grasp

Too immense to behold.

the thorn branch

In one of those random conversations with a friend of mine who can pretty much complete my sentences for me... She made a statement, comparing some relationships in our lives to holding on to a thorn branch for dear life.

Holding on here is as difficult as letting go. The harder you hold the more you hurt yourself. The moment you let go, the dark plunge that follows will take you to bottoms you never knew existed. The only solace of letting go is the few moments of peace and freedom during the free fall before you hit the rock bottom.

Most of us might come out of the abysmal depths, with our sanity intact. The wound inflicted will eventually heal. The scars however will be our constant companion.

The choice of holding onto the thorn branch ever so tightly or letting go and embracing the free fall is up to us. The pain however remains as a common denominator no matter what choice we make.

Is there a way to completely escape all this pain ? I am not sure.

Maybe it’s time we took Buddha’s words more seriously.

-- Ro&I