The naked man

He walked on the road, head held high about 45 years of age. Thin body, thin hands and legs, White hair and beard. Deep set eyes in a shrunk face.....Both his palms tightly held together, trying to cover his private parts. On a chill winter morning, on the smog covered roads of Mumbai I saw this man walking......stark naked! He was completely oblivious to the crowd around him, not acknowledging the fact that he was walking naked on a busy by lane of Mumbai. The crowd around him too was oblivious to him. People walked past him as if he was invisible. They were all rushing somewhere...The naked man did not care about the crowd on the road. The people on the road did not bother about the naked man. For their conscience, he was invisible. I was disturbed by that sight. Still thinking......Who should be ashamed? The naked man on the road or all of us called 'the society'? He may be a destitute who could not afford to buy new clothes or he may be mentally ill and so has shed his clothes. Some months back, a perfectly normal married young women walked the streets of Gujarat in her undergarments. She too walked with her head held high, completely oblivious of the crowd around her? Who went naked? The women or the society of which she is a part? We are all living in a society which has become naked. It has shed all its clothes. The fabric of care, compassion, concern, responsibility for its fellow members....

An ode to the Taj Mahal

"What is love, I do not know. But that by its power, a king gave away his throne".

So apt. So touching. I remember the first time I visited the Taj Mahal, on the marble steps of the tomb a friend recited a few lines which have remained etched in my memory....

"Thousand years from now
When I shall be all but dust and sand,
At the sound of your voice
I will rise again."

Rabindranath Tagore has described Taj as a tear drop on the cheeks of time...God bless their true love

Contemporary human values in a materialistic society

I am not the only one. All of us are dazed, amazed and confused!!! It is a common topic for discussions across the world. People discuss this over tea tables, lunch meets, dinner and almost anywhere and everwhere. I am concerned...Where are we heading? Where are human values heading? What is happening to the world? Why is the social code degenerating so fast? What will be the value system of the generation next? and next? and next? Who is responsible for maintaining the decorum of the society? As usual I have more questions and no answers?

I am thinking aloud for a minute. Where is the starting point for all this?As a society where are we learning from? (At this stage I am not questioning what are we learning?)What is influencing my ideas, knowledge, behaviour and values? Are these influences the culprits? Let us try and analyse them. Here I am speaking purely from my own experiences. In a decreasing order of importance most of the stimuli comes from the Television, Print media (News paper, very little from magazines), My office environment, Home or family, Colleagues/friends, Books, Internet, Radio, Internet, Products and services available in the market. It is directly proportional to the time spent on that activity/in that environment.

Am I aware of these stimuli which is reaching me without my knowledge? Not really. With each passing day there is garbage being pumped into my mind/life. I am absorbing all of it. Some I keep some I discard. So much of all this trash is reaching me that I need a higher processing capability to sort out these stimuli. So instead of spending time and sorting out these stimuli, I let them remain. And so the garbage stays. My mind has become a cockatil of tons of useless information. Television is a mixed bag! Print media is a mixed confused bag of information. Advertisments give confused messages. Society is disconnected from entertainmnet and media. The western concept of Marketing has completely taken over life. All mass communication is exxaggeration, misleading and incorrect. There are too many unwanted magazines on the stands...There is just toooo much of information.

It is time for the society to clean up. Clean up and minimise. It is time for the society to move back to a spartan life. Minimise our material possessions, minimise our activities that fill the day, consolidate human existence, consolidate society and relationships. It is time for each one of us who constitute the society to look in. We are all being driven by the external world. Life like a car is driven inside-out and not outside-in. It is time to spend some quality time inside ourselves. The answers lie within us.

Happy Birthday To Me!!!

It is my birthday today. One more year gone past. Does one look forward or back ward? Certainly forward. But there are learning's from the past, and events and associations and feelings and so many moments of life which one wants to cherish. So birthday is a mixed bag of feelings. Of the days gone past which will never come back and the future...the unknown, what lies ahead in life.

For me it is a day to enjoy myself with the family-parents, brother and husband. I owe my being alive, and whatevere I am to my family. For the constant love and caring they have shown. For their courage and support. God has given me life for which I am very greatful to him, but family has given me an identity.

I don't beleive in making resolutions. One does not have to wait for a birthday or a newyear to change what is not correct in one's life.

I owe it to myself to constantly improve my self, my life and keep myself happy. My happiness is my responsibility. If anyone else adds to it I am greatful to him/her. If anyone subtracts from happiness/makes me unhappy I forgive the person. This attitude helps me keep a balanced outlook to life. On my birthday I am filled with a deep sense of gratitide to the Universe for my existence.

An attitude of gratitude is what I ask of God. My birthday present from God....Pleaseee bring peace to the world and tons of happiess and health to all.

What is...will not be

That is the true nature of our Universe. What is ...will one day not be. This law applies to all the constituents of the Universe. Everything changes form, it has to change form. The bright Sun we see today, will become cold and die away thousands of years from now. Stars die and so do living creatures. Chal (moving, free) beings die; achal (fixed) things such as trees, earth and mountains too die. Dying here refers to ceasing to exist in the same form. If all the things in the world are changing constantly or dying, then why are we human beings so scared of death? Or is it that over thousands of years, the religious gurus have instilled a fear of death in our minds. They have created a non-ending business out of death. Is death something to be really feared? Or is it just a natural process or a change? Is there anything after death? Another life...a heaven...a hell ??? The religious pandas have created many rituals after death which innocent people keep following. Out of the fear that something will happen. There are no religious rituals done when an animal or a tree dies? The why has human death been turned into such a big business? And a perennial one too. According to Hindu philosophy, the human body is made up of Panchtatv (Earth, Fire, Water, Space and Air). Our mortal remains go back to the Panchtatv. Nothing remains after death. It is a full stop. Human death is as natural a process as the death of any other being in the Universe. Accepting death as a natural process or transformation from one form to another, frees our mind of fear.

Shubh Deepavali

Deepavali is an Indian festival, celebrated by the Hindu's. It is also extremely popular as the festival of lights all over the Asian sub-continent. According to the Hindu calendar, Deepavali falls on Kartik Amavasya usually in October or November. It symbolises the victory of good over bad. According to Hindu Mythology, Lord Ram and his wife Sita returned home after 14 years of exile.

Deepavali means loads of activities which start almost a month before. It is a good time for all the families to clean their homes, plan for the sweets, clothes and other shopping!!!

On Deepavali day, all are decked in new clothes and there is a lot of excitement in the air. Night time is for lighting the oil lamps, candles, bursting crackers and the traditional Lakshmi Puja followed by a round of gambling (it is considered auspicious). I particularly like decorating the main entrance of my house with colourful Rangloi made of flowers and dry colours.

People say that things change as we grow old. But for me the excitement, enthusiasm and fun during Deepavali has remained unchanged. I eagerly look forward to it every year and feel the blues when Deepavali is over. It suddenly feels like...ohhh ...one more long year to wait for the next Deepavali!!!! Wishing everyone a fun-filled, happy and prosperous Diwali.

Karma

THE DOCTRINE OF KARMA AS DEFINED IN VEDANTA

Connected to Hindu ethics is the Doctrine of Karma or the Doctrine of Cause and Effect. According to this doctrine, good deeds done on earth bring good results and bad deeds bad results. Suffering and enjoyment in this life or hereafter are caused by one’s bad and good deeds, or Karma, done in the past. God is not responsible for one’s suffering or enjoyment.

Simple yet profound. And yet if it is so simple, why doesn't masses of humanity believe in it? Or is it just a sales pitch given by the early scholars to sell religion? There are no answers.

Lord Buddha in his state of meditation went into a deep trance and narrated his various births. These stories are know as the Jatak Tales. In acute agony during his meditation, Lord Buddha groaned...."where is the freedom? Where is the freedom from Karma?". I shudder when ever I think of his statement. If Lord Buddha could not free himself of Karma, what am I? A mere ignorant soul. There is no freedom from Karma!!!

Who decides what is a good or bad Karma? Nobody. It is the conscience (niti) and the consequence that seperates the good from the bad. Arjun on the battle field of Kurukshetra asked Lord Krishna, "All these are my relatives. How can I fight them? How can I kill them?". In answer to his question, Lord Krishna said, "You are a king. A ruler. Your first responsibility is towards your people. Each one of us is born with a niyat (inherent) karma. To kill his prey is the niyat Karma of a Lion. It is not good or bad. It is just his Karma. To protect and nurture a baby is the niyat Karma of a mother. There is nothing good or bad in it. Hence to protect your Kingdom from these people is your duty. It is your Karma".

Arjun followed his Guru, Lord Krishna and did what he was told to do. But what has happened to all of us? Why has the World forgotten this doctrine of Karma? Why are we so insensitive to the consequences of our own actions. The law of Karma says it all comes back to you. The good and the bad.

Hugh Prather has written in his book,'Notes to myself', "People connect my actions with the results. They are unable to judge my actions in isolation of the results. But at this moment I must act, because at this moment I don't know of the results."

Cntrl+alt+del

Often people ask me during a job interview,"what is it that you want to do in life?". As if the person asking the question knows what he/she wants to do in his/her life!. Silly question. Funny part is, if I tell them what is it that I want to do, they will not give me a job! I want to end this pretence of knowledge. Knowing things. Want to get back to a state of child like ignorance. When there were more things that I did not know, rather than many things which I have to pretend I know. People refer to me as the knowledgable, Intelligent types. People also say that knowledge is wealth. So yes, to a certain extent I am wealthy. It is like having loads of dollars in a country where the currency
is a riyad or a yen. Of no use. You are still poor. All my knowledge is bookish or corporate. Unwanted and useless. Burden, just like unwanted wealth. God only knows what all is there in this garbage that I have accumulated over the years. Tons of templates, emails, notes and processes. Just want to shed this unwanted flab of knowledge. Tiers of fat which has got formed around my mind. Making it slow. Like the tiers of fat around the waist. Making a person slow. Don't know of any technique cntrl+alt+del and the mind is clean. Clean and empty to allow some fresh air and light!

Your eyes say so many things....otherwise unsaid

These days there are strange shadows in your eyes. Some memory, a flicker of thought...something from the past. I can read so many things; emptiness, questions to which there are no answers, deep sadness, anger with self/him/world/your parents, helplessness; restlessness and a desire to escape from it all. Escape from the loss, the deep pain. So many things happening inside you. Don't think I can't see it all. It makes me sad too. Very sad. Can't describe it. You are strong. You have resilience. Get over it. Life is all about happiness. Remember, happiness is the magnetic north which attracts us. That is god's design of human form. Praise his design and go with the flow of life. Just like the river in Siddartha. We all loved him just as much.Quoting my favorite lines for you

Struck with palsy, sore and old,
Waiting at the Gates of Gold,
Said he with his dying breath,
"Life is done, but what is death?
"Then, in answer to the king,
Fell a sun beam on his ring,
"Even this shall pass away."

Creative Visualisation

Time to get life back on the tracks. Not worth the crib. Time to move forward in life. Bitterness is not my style. I am born optimist. Always positive. It is like being healthy. It is natural. Illness is unnatural. So is negativity. I treat life like a child. Try not hurry and nothing to worry. Need to loosen up a bit. Time to do some creative visualisation, a technique proposed by Shakti Gwain. The trick is to visualise something that you want. And go into the finer details. The more details one visualises, the closer you are to the object. Very relaxing. They say that when you visualise something, the entire universe starts working to bring that object into your life. It is a positive affirmative technique. I would love to be in Goa right now. Sitting on my favourite beach-Vagator with my husband. Just the two of us. The beach is very unusual. When one is sitting on the rocks, the sea waves are at the human eye level. You suddenly feel as if you are actually sitting under the waves. Towards one side of the beach is a short hill, over looking the sea. Amazing sight. In the dissappearing light of the evening sun, the sea, the moutain and the beach all turn strange colours. Blue, then orange and then purple. Gradually people start leaving the beach. It becomes silent. As time passes, it grows darker and more quite. One can hear the stray dogs barking. Silence....listen to the sound of the waves....soothing, rythmic consistent in its range. Gradually it all fades away into the night. The sea, the beach and the hill are all engulfed in the darkness of night.

Work

I really don't know if it is a failure. But yes, the feeling is not very good. Precious years of my life dedicated to a cause. The cause of doing good work. Work which I love and did at all times with sincereity and dedication. So many flights taken; disturbed sleep of family members because I had an early morning flight to catch, dinner eaten in a restaurant later in the night because the evening flight back home got delayed. Beautiful moments of celebrations missed because I was traveling for work away from home. Days when the body and the mind were too tired to do anything else but fall on the bed. So much effort, all wasted. In the name of work. Life went on, things and people got left behind. Precious moments of life got lost in eternity, all because I was preoccupied with work. Work which has not given me much in return. What kind of corporate monsters have we created which only take take and take more from people like me. Without giving anything in return? Making us slaves, robbing us of our time. Free I want to be. Free from the habit of going to work every morning. Free to be my own boss. Free not to shout and fire people just because one has to. I am simply bored of this routine. As my friend Sniggdha says, "Imagine wearing heels to go to office every day? How boring!!!". I don't want to wear heels to work every day for the rest of my life. It is a moment of important decision. To free myself from the world of coporate slavery or continue with the caged existence of a corporate employee?

Einstein has said, "If someone feels that they had never made a mistake in life, then it means they had never tries a new thing in their life."

Shakti

October is such a beautiful month. There is so much festivity in the air all over Mumbai. Rakshabandhan followed by Ganesh Chaturthi and then Durga Puja and Dandia happening together. Lots of noise, music, lights and fun in the air. Today is Navami. The ninth day of Puja. Morning I was at the Durga Pooja Pandal with Kaushik. One can not take eyes off the Statue of Goddess Durga or Ma Kali. She is so powerful, yet feminine and motherly. Ever giving to all its children. The prasad khichdi they serve at the Puja is amazing tasty. Women looking gorgeous in rich colourful silk zari sarees. Their eyes dark with Kajal, crimson sindoor on the foreheah. Displaying their lovely gold ornaments necklaces, earrings, bangles. Large red bindis symbolic of married state. Men elegant in embroidered silk kurtas, looking slightly lost. Men usually are lost in such social gatherings. It is women all the way! There were exotic food stalls selling kolkatta rolls, cutlets, fiah and tons of Bengali sweets. Children running mad all over the place. What chaos, total madness. But its fun. All because of Ma Durga is here. I love Durga Puja.

An excerpt from "The Bridges of Madison County"-Robert James Waller

"God or the universe or whatever one chooses to label the great systems of balance and order does not recognise Earth-time. To the universe few years is no different than four billion light years. We could have flashed by one another like two pieces of cosmic dust, never to meet."

We meet people because its is destined. Else in the canteen of our office, we could have missed each other by a few seconds. I could have been introduced to someone else. Known someone else. As said in the book "One", "there exist infinite worlds and there is a chance that we can land in any one of them." A universe which does not recognise Earth-time gifted us those few seconds.

Finding the silence zone

Thoughts are our friend for a life. They keep floating in and out of our mind, just like friends in our house. Some thoughts are light as a feather, some heavy as a piece of Lead. We are helpless, we have no control over them. The good, the not so good and the bad thoughts. All are welcome. Variety of thoughts....Dreams, Love for someone, Concern, Worries, New ideas, Desires, Fear, Creative thoughts...mind is a monkey. It will not still idol. Result, the mind gets tired processing these thoughts 24X7X52. Just as the stomach gets tired digesting food after we have eaten too much, or legs get tired after a long walk. A healthy mind needs a daily dose of complete silence for atleast 30 minutes- to rest, recover and rejuvenate itself. And a healthy mind can do wonders to life. So just enjoy short periods of silence each day by not talking to anyone for a few minutes in the day, meditation, taking a short sleep/nap or taking a short walk alone. Find time to be alone with yourself each day. These work for me and help me quiten my mind.

Silence is precious. Don't loose it in this cacophony of sound inside and outside. Look at a ferocious tiger living in the jungles of Afrika. With all its feline grace and power, it looks so much more relaxed than most of us living in large cities. We have made god's paradise (our world) a noise choked hell. Phone, TV, Computer, Work, Traffic...the list is endless. Humanity has become slave to science- tense, worn out and irritable. The whole world is talking about pollution, global warming and melting ice-plates. But what about some silence? Please.....

Vedanta-The Eternities

Recently I had an opportunity to read a book on Vedanta by A. Parthasarthy. His book is called 'The Eternities', Vedanta treatise. This book is about living life on the Vedic principles. Independent of any religion. There is a part in the book which I really liked very much. Very apt because I identify with the writers thoughts. Sharing the same for my friends.

"Few realise that the greatest contributions of humanity can never compensate for the largesse of nature. All the material work you can offer is immaterial. Yet every body hurries and worries about his work. Your approach to life should be to just do what your ought to do. This is the begining and end of your obligations. You are not to brood over or become excited about your duty and responsibility. Your real duty in life is to remain self-poised and self-pleased. Your primary service to the world, your religious duty is to keep yourself peaceful and cheerful. To be sorrowful and miserable is a social, moral and religious crime. You ought not to spread the disease of melancholy to your fellow beings. Instead rejuvenate their health with joy and happiness. This attitude must blend with work.

The moment you are born the good world provides you with everything you need. Oxygen to breath, mother's milk, the right temperature outside and inside and countless other things. You become totally indebted to the world. You must therefore maintain a sense of gratitude through your life.

The German scholar Arthur Schopenhauer has said: It is difficult to find happiness in onself but it is impossible to find it anywhere else.

Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr has described it more exiquistely:

For him in vain the envious seasons roll
Who bears eternal summer in his soul."

Be cheerful and have a great day.

A Poem by Theodre Tilton - This too shall pass away

I am overwhelmed with the response received to this poem. I was reading through a book and found this poem in the book. The fine words of this poem touched a deep cord in my heart and I decided to put it up on the net i.e my blog for others to read it and enjoy too.

Just sharing some statistics with the visitors to my blog- there is an average of 2 hits per day on my blog because someone somewhere is searching for this poem!!!! Also this poem, complete in all respects is only available on my blog, nowhere else on the net (I think so). I have tried searching it myself but was unable to find it.

My only request to all those who visit my blog for this poem, please take time and read through the write-ups I have on blog. It is a promise you will not be disappointed.

This Too Shall Pass Away

Once in Persia reigned a King,
Who upon his signet ring
Graved a maxim true and wise,
Which, if held before his eyes,
Gave him counsel at a glance,
Fit for every change and chance.
Solemn words, and these are they;
"Even this shall pass away."

Trains of camels through the sand
Brought him gems from Samarcand;
Fleets of galleys through the seas
Brought him pearls to match with these;
But he counted not his gain,
Treasures of mine or main;
"What is wealth?" the king would say;
"Even this shall pass away."

Mid the revels of his court,
At the zenith of his sport,
When the palms of all his guests,
Burned with clapping at his jests,
He, amid his figs and wine;
Cried, 'O loving friends of mine;
Pleasures come, but not to stay;
"Even this shall pass away"

Lady, fairest ever seen,
Was the bride he crowned his queen.
Pillowed on his marriage bed,
Softly to his soul he said:
Though no bridegroom ever passed;
Fairer bosom to his breast,
Mortal flesh must come to clay-
"Even this shall pass away"

Fighting on a furious field,
Once a javelin pierced his shield;
Soldiers, with a loud lament,
Bore him bleeding to his tent.
Groaning from his tortured side,
"Pain is hard to bear," he cried;
"But with patience, day by day,
Even this shall pass away.

Towering in the public square,
Twenty cubits in the air,
Rose his statue carved in stone.
Then the king, disguised, unknown,
Stood before his sculptured name,
Musing meekly: "What is fame?"
Fame is but a slow decay;

Even this shall pass away.

Struck with palsy, sore and old,
Waiting at the Gates of Gold,
Said he with his dying breath,
"Life is done, but what is death?"
Then, in answer to the king,
Fell a sun beam on his ring,
"Even this shall pass away."

Autum sun, dry leaves and the tree.

The "IntelligentTree" was discovered during one of our holiday's many years ago. My husband and myself had gone to Lonavala, a hill station near Mumbai. There was this tree in the back garden of our Hill resort. Something about the tree caught our attention. It stood tall and barren, without many leaves. At the end of each day, the grass in the back garden of our pent-house Villa would be covered with the dry leaves of the tree. It was beautiful and charming. In the Orange-reddish light of the fading winter sun, a cosmic bond was formed between the three of us-Kaushik, myself and the tree. We would sit gazing at the tree for hours talking about everthing under the sky. The tree fascinated me. Kaushik would ask me why I kept looking at the tree for so long. And I would reply saying that the tree looks very Intelligent as if talking and responding to me. Very amusing, but I was convinced. And so we debated. The two of us. Our debates brought life to the tree. The holiday ended.

Years have gone by since we saw the tree. Busy life. No time to go back and recapture the magic of the mountain and the tree. It all feels very far away. Don't know if the tree is still there. The memory of that beautiful holiday remains carved in our memory. The "IntelligentTree" from the back garden of the far far away hill resort is our own little secret from the world. Work, family, responsibilties take away precious time. No free time to sit and gaze around doing nothing. And life passes by.

Precious seconds of life slip by unnoticed just like grains of sand. How much ever we wish to hold the sand in our hands, it slips by.

The "IntelligentTree" lingered in both our minds, it still is there.

'IntelligentTree' now available on Blogger@google.

This message is for all those who have been visiting my blog 'IntelligentTree' at Blogsource. Please note that Blogsource has shut down its blog service. My blog 'IntelligentTree' is no longer available on blogsource. Unfortunately the content of my earlier blog could not be transferred to this new blog. Will attempt to take time out and re-publish the archieved items. I want to thank all my friends who have supported my blog on blogsource for the past two years.

Please circulate/add my new blog address to your list.


http://IntelligentTree.blogspot.com/

Dedicating this blog to Joy

This post is in memory of my younger brother-in-law who passed away recently. Dear Joy, we all love you very much. Your untimely demise has left a huge void in our lives. May God bless your soul with peace and happiness.