Rise and Fall of Babas; Prevalence of Numerous Sects in Hinduism and the Way Ahead

After recent news and controversies around some of them, 'Babas' have become completely out of flavor. Before the most recent one from Haryana, we had cases with Baba Rampal and Asaram Bapu also, making it look like a "pattern". Our human brain is designed to understand "patterns" and it reflects in the way we are talking about 'Babas' these days. Social media is filled with abuses written by some very educated and bright minds against these Babas. It is not surprising because social media is a means of expression, not a tool of education. But still, what are the lessons we are learning from the infamous 'Babas'?

If we look at their backgrounds, one thing is clear. These Babas were first generation entrepreneurs who ran their spiritual empires like corporate houses. And they lacked tradition, 'sanskara' and were married men with kids (i.e. were no sanyasis) before deciding to go spiritual. Baba Rampal (Original name: Rampal Singh Jatin) had a diploma and worked as junior engineer. He quit his job and started his sect (Satlok Ashram). And what does his sect teach? Among other things it teaches that Saint Kabir is the Supreme Lord; asks disciples not to visit Hindu temples and not to worship Hinduism's trinity of Brahma, Vishnu or Shiva! He is married and has two children.

Asaram Bapu (Original name: Asumal Thaumal Harpalani) was born in a Sindhi family in Sindh, Pakistan and migrated to Ahmedabad after partition. Being a school drop-out, he managed his father's coal and wood business for sometime. He is also married with two kids. Although his teachings are not controversial since he preaches Advaita Vedanta and Bhakti Yoga.

It is also not only a male phenomenon. For example we had Radhe Ma (Original name: Sukhvinder Kaur) who is a school dropout, got married at early age and used to stitch clothes to supplement her husband's income. Before of course joining a religious sect and becoming self-styled god-woman.

Now, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Insan is married with several children. His Dera Sacha Sauda (DSS) is a registered NGO and all Gurus of DSS have come from Sikh background. They have their own sect/religion and welcome people from all different religions. It is ironical that it is he who has triggered this "anti-Baba" feeling in the masses while he is not really a "Hindu Baba" per se.

And the worst part is: these Babas are not alone. The more you would know about different sects and their beliefs, the more you would get confused and 'uninterested' in religion. ISKCON for example is a very popular sect and we all visit its temples. But ISKCON sect does not consider Krishna as Lord Vishnu's avatar but it considers Lord Krishna as the Supreme God. Worshiping Lord Krishna is a different matter and we all do that - but not an avatar but Supreme Lord? Where does it leave our Lord Shiva? The sect considers Shiva as a manifestation of Lord Krishna! That changes everything!

If you visited the wonderful Akshardham temple; it belongs to Swaminarayan sect. Ever wondered who is Swaminarayan? He was born with orignal name of Ghanshyam Pande in Chhapaiya, Uttar Pradesh in 1781. At early age he joined Uddhav Sampraday which later became Swaminarayan Sampraday as Ghanshyam Pande became Swaminarayan. Followers of Swaminarayan sect believe that Swaminarayan is the complete incarnation of Lord Vishnu and more superior to other avatars.

And then there is Brahma Kumaris. Their name contains "Brahma" and then their preachers keep talking about "Shiva Baba" and it appears so nice to the Hindus. But go deeper and you would realize that the Brahma Kumaris is a full fledged "religion" in itself. They call their founder Lekhraj Kripalani as "Brahma Baba" and Shiv Baba is their Godfather (supreme being). Although most of their basic ideas are similar to Hinduism, there is lot of dogma about how world started, how it is going to end, and who will survive and how.

In the era of these numerous "modern" sects, older sects like Arya Samaj, Ramakrishna Mission etc appear to be "old fashioned". I wonder how many people from younger generation or in the cities are reaching out to them.

Although most interesting thing about Hinduism is that while its "diversity" would appear like its weakness (there are so many beliefs, so many deities, so many sects and hence Hindus are seldom united for any cause), it is actually a strength which has allowed it to "survive". It is common knowledge that a very large set of people are difficult to be kept in one piece and dividing them into smaller sets makes them easier to manage. I think such was the idea of having so many sects. But what if sects start preaching very different things; and try to make themselves break out into separate full fledged religions? It has happened with Sikhism in the past which had started as a sect within Hinduism. If it happens too often and starts giving unwanted results, then it has to be "curbed".

The solution is simple: "return to the roots". According to most central ideas of Hinduism, Supreme Being is called Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva when it creates, preserves and renews. If you see any sect trying to say one of these are higher than others, which essentially means that these three are different and one can be "higher" or "lower" than other; be warned against such upstarts. If you see any sect asking you to "worship" mere mortals like its sect leader, any guru or any imaginary being, be warned. Try to be as near to the ancient practices as possible. If Yagna is not possible, offer flowers and other items which symbolically mean the same (offerings). Try to visit temples of original deities like Shiva, Vishnu or Durga. Pick any one of the deities and keep your faith in one deity instead of making it a spiritual tourism - because the more you would wander, the less peace you would have. Try to read original scriptures but be warned against different versions written by different sect leaders with a political explanation of the meanings. Try to read Swami Vivekananda in case of any doubts, who has done a wonderful job in writing down his thoughts and conclusions on most of the things related to Hinduism. And if you are choosing a Guru, look for his family history and other things apart from competence and the advertising done around him.

Let us take the rise and fall of 'Babas' in a stride as an opportunity to do course correction. Let us also pardon them because they were mere mortals and prone to corruption. Let us watch ourselves instead to avoid any flaws and bad habits getting into us. Even those disgraced 'Babas' taught nice things to others; and hence teachings do not matter. What matters is: how much we get to practice the good that is shared with us.

Om Shanti Shanti Shanti.

- Rahul

Justice in Gurmeet Ram Rahim Case Leading to Mass Violence

With 30+ people dead, 350+ injured, including 50 women in serious condition, and with a civil-war like situation on the streets, after an unpopular verdict by a court; makes us wonder: "was it worth it?". Was it worth it?

Everyone knew including the court and govt of course, that an unfavorable verdict towards the cult leader would lead to this situation. It appears govt and police tried their best to avoid it and yet it turned out to be exactly the way everyone feared it would turn out to be. Only, we are not sure if the court and govt "feared" at all.

I tried to search internet to get some particulars about the case. In April 2002, an accusation was made in an anonymous letter that a woman including several others were sexually exploited by the cult leader for "3 years". Although there was no case filed by the victim, High Court ordered an inquiry in this case and after sometime HC handed over the inquiry to CBI. The ordeal went on for 15 years; during the time the victims were married to other men and were reluctant to share details. But somehow CBI was able to take statements of two women and other parties. None of the media reports, at least during my internet search, reveal about what proofs CBI collected, apart from of course the "statements" of the victims and some others.

After the ongoing case for 15 years, all of a sudden last month in July, as if due to a divine intervention, the court ordered "daily hearings" in the case. After daily hearings, arguments were closed and the cult leader was pronounced guilty yesterday. None of the media reports reveal particulars of the case like what proofs and evidences were presented, what were challenged, etc. In the era of 20-20 Cricket, we are now seeing "snap judgments". If justice delayed is justice denied, I wonder what "justice hustled" should be called.

What could have been done differently? First, there should not have been daily hearings given the sensitivity of the case. Rushed emergency-like proceedings were expected to "shock" the cult members, leading to social unrest and wide spread speculations. Taking it slowly over at least 6 months would have kept the tempers under control. Secondly, the proceedings of the case should have been briefed to the media, so that people would be aware of and in-line with gravity of the case, fairness of the proceedings and would not get shocked with what was to finally come out. Third, if cult leader was pronounced guilty, verdict on punishment should have been made on the same day, instead of giving 3 days to the chaos and if there was a possibility for the accused to get a bail, his bail application should have been processed on the same day. That would have pacified his agitating and grieving supporters while still keeping the records right.

As we know, this is a CBI court and the cult leader can still go to a higher court to get bail and challenge its verdict. So, was it worth it to let an impression be created as if this was the last straw and that there was no road ahead for the cult leader; leading to mass protests and violence?

Coming to media; while I read news report, I read how the cult leader worked extensively against social evils like drug addiction, helped families financially during daughters' weddings, worked a lot for women empowerment, etc. That does not help build a public opinion against the accused. And media reports which are totally lacking the particulars of the case proceedings, add to the chaos of anxious supporters.

To me, this whole episode appears to be a man-made disaster. While trying to uphold the "justice", the court rushed to decision resulting in shocked reactions of supporters. And worse - this is a trend. Centuries old practice of "triple talaq" was abolished abruptly after the court said it would do "daily hearings". I wonder what has gotten over the judiciary that it is rushing to give most shocking verdicts in most unexpected hurried manner. Next in line can be Ayodhya case which can go the "daily hearing" mode. Are the courts comforted by a strong national government at the center? No matter what the source of this "over confidence" is, it is a recipe of disaster.

Not the verdict themselves, but the manner in which these verdicts are being rushed to, needs review of the judiciary. Given the law and order situation in our country, communal harmony has always been the top agenda of our governments. But all these recent court orders which are being rushed to are linked with communal and religious faiths.

We can hail the court verdicts as victory of justice but we can't afford to lose our men and women like this. Justice for the sake of justice, ignoring the realities of the time, leading to mass violence and destroying the communal harmony in our country appears a better candidate for delaying rather than having it now and leading to disasters.

I would prefer justice delayed but taking public opinion along with it, rather than justice hustled to and leading to mass violence and protests.

I don't think it was "worth it" to have 30 lives lost and social unrest invited over the last 24 hours.

Let peace prevail.

- Rahul

एक भावुक दुनिया

एक इमोशनल यानि भावुक इन्सान के लिए ये जीवन कितना कठिन और दिलचस्प (एक साथ) हो सकता है - बाकी लोग कल्पना भी नहीं कर सकते। वह दुनिया को एक अलग नजरिए से देखता है। या यूँ कहें कि जहाँ बाकी लोग चीजें 'देखते' हैं, वो चीजें 'महसूस' करता है। 

जहाँ बाकी लोग यदि कहीं जाने से खुश और एक्साइटेड होते हैं, वह जो छूट रहा होता है उससे खेदग्रस्त होता है। और ऐसा बचपन से होता है। स्कूल के हर छूटते क्लास से, हर बदलने वाले स्कूल से, स्कूल के हर बच्चे से, स्कूल की दीवार से, उसके नाम से, उसके डरावने टीचर्स से, यहाँ तक कि खस्ताहाल स्कूल-रिक्शे से - हर किसी से उसका एक "कनेक्शन" हुआ करता है। मुहल्ले के चिल्लाने वाले खड़ूस बूढ़े पड़ोसी से, अच्छी बड़ी दीदी से, सारे के सारे चाचा-चाचियों से, मुहल्ले की पतली गली से, गली की हर मोड़ से, मोड़ के पास पानी से भरे गड्ढे से, बगल की टूटती दीवार से, दीवार के पास सूखे पत्तों की ढ़ेर से, ढ़ेर में कभी लगने वाली आग से निकलते धुएँ से, और धुएँ की महक से - हर किसी से उसका एक "कनेक्शन" होता है। और एक बार कनेक्शन हुआ तो अब बस - जीवन भर उसे साथ ही रहना है। जिस बात से लोगों को 'बुरा' लग सकता है - उससे वह व्यथित होकर रोता है। इमोशन्स और आंसुओं का बड़ा पक्का रिश्ता है, चाहे दुःख के हों या खुशी के। 

हालाँकि इमोशन्स एक तरह से इंसान को थकाते हैं और भावुक इंसान को ये बोझ बनकर खूब थकाते हैं, इनके कई फायदे भी हैं। अति-भावुक लोगों का इंट्यूशन (सहज बोध) बहुत स्ट्रॉन्ग (प्रबल) होता है - ये सच्चे और झूठे लोगों को बहुत जल्दी पहचान लेते हैं। ये सब जान लेते हैं। आप इन्हें अपनी सच्ची भावनाएँ समझा सकते हैं जो दूसरे नहीं समझ सकते। ये अक्सर विनम्र होते हैं और दूसरों की चिंता करते हैं। चीजों को गहन रूप से समझने के कारण अक्सर ये परफेक्शनिस्ट होते हैं। और ये बहुत क्रिएटिव (रचनात्मक) होते हैं। क्रिएटिविटी के अलावा इनकी इमेजिनेशन (कल्पनाशक्ति) कमाल की होती है - इसलिए इन्हें "आउट-ऑफ़-बॉक्स" विचार आसानी से आते हैं। चीजों को "महसूस" करने के कारण ये अक्सर ज्यादा "फुलफिल्ड" (अंदर से भरे-पूरे) रहते हैं। दूसरों को और कभी-कभी इन्हें स्वयं भी दया या सहानुभूति हो सकती है पर अक्सर इनकी 'अपनी दुनिया' बहुत ही क्रिएटिव और इंटरेस्टिंग होती है। और अगर इमोशंस को संभालना इन्होंने सीख लिया तो उसकी अधिकता से होनेवाले नुकसानदेह प्रभावों से वो अपने को बचा भी सकते हैं।

रिसर्चर्स (शोधकर्ता) बताते हैं कि इमोशनल लोगों का दिमाग कुछ अलग तरीके से काम करता है और विश्व में करीब २०% लोग अति-भावुक होते हैं। समय-समय पर हम सब अपने आप को अति-भावुक कह सकते हैं पर सच्चा भावुक व्यक्ति इसे कभी-कभी नहीं "हर समय" महसूस करता है। बाकी लोग बस उसके कुछ झलक ही देख पाते होंगे। 

अंत में बस ये कहूँगा - जीवन अगर "इंटरेस्टिंग" (दिलचस्प) है तो भावुक लोगों की दुनिया "निराली" है। इमोशन्स यानि भावों से ही इंसानियत नजर आती है और मानव समाज अपने सर्वोत्तम गुणों को आज भी बचाए हुए है। काश दूसरे भी थोड़े और संवेदनशील बनें ताकि उनकी दुनिया इनकी दुनिया से ज्यादा अलग न रह पाए।

- राहुल तिवारी 

[#Fashion] The Tilting Heads Phenomenon: Why Women Tilt Their Heads in Photos and Selfies

The latest fashion trend amongst women is an interesting tilt – women are increasingly seen tilting their heads sideways while taking photographs or selfies. It seems the conventional pose of facing the camera straight has been left for the bewildered men while women have started tilting their heads at varying degrees and looking at the camera in some mischievous ways which others can’t understand at all. Men are totally baffled about what has gotten into the female head. They could understand the ‘duck face’ as well as the ‘fish pout’ but now these tilting faces? It does not make any sense at all!

I tried to read what others think about it. Majority of observers say that it is just a body language which sends out a message of being ‘non-threatening’. But I think this is an 18^th century explanation to a 21^st century phenomenon. If women needed to indicate ‘non-threatening’ sign this way, they would have invented the ‘tilting head’ pose hundreds of years ago. Why wait for the Selfie cameras to arrive? Also, who are the girls sending ‘non-threatening’ signs to while they tilt heads in ‘selfies’?

When we tilt our head, it naturally makes our face appear leaner. So can this ‘tilting head’ phenomenon be attributed to a cover-up act by those with round faces which in turn indicates a ‘healthier’ person? (Btw, in the world of fashion, looking ‘healthy’ is a sin. To fit into those latest dresses, you need to appear a bit sick to get closer to your skeleton which is ‘size-zero’. When your mother or grand-mother starts worrying about your health you can be assured that your friends and peers would have started envying you.)

I used to believe in above theory until I saw my nephew. He is a cute little angel but when he appears in a photograph he tilts his head at one side and gives an expression of immense love and affection. Learning from his pose I came to conclusion about why women would tilt their heads. They think that the ‘tilting head with a smiling face’ pose sends out love and affection! But then why didn’t women of previous generation invent this pose? May be because they were too conventional – and looking straight in camera is a conventional pose.

For women of previous generation, the most important priority of life was to appear and lead life of a ‘good woman’. And hence even a slight tilt of head could be seen as digression and better be avoided. Women of this generation are least bothered about what others think of them while most bothered about how they are looking (which may appear ironical but it is not).

We can also look at it this way. Once upon a time, women lived under strict discipline and kept their heads ‘low’. Then came a generation of well-educated career women who kept their heads ‘straight’. And now comes a generation of women spoilt with choices like never before and hence they are tilting their heads ‘sideways’.

In the end, I think the most convincing answer would be – it is just a stupid craze. That is what most fashion trends are. After a while women would get bored tilting heads and they would start looking straight again. And then life would be simple again for some time.

- Rahul

[#Movies] Sarkar 3

There have been hundreds of gangster movies in the past and what new could the latest addition to the Sarkar Trilogy bring? And that is where Ram Gopal Varma and Amitabh Bachchan prove our doubts unfounded and have brought together another fine movie having all the brilliance of a thriller.

Sarkar series is our own Godfather series. Our Subhash Nagre has perhaps got more shades in his character than the legendary Vito Corleone had got. In Sarkar 3, Amitabh has become even more intense. Being the master patriarch and hero of the masses is not an easy job and it asks for sacrifices and subjects one to innumerable pain. Can a Don be as sensitive as Subhash Nagre is? Could a Don feel the pain of the poor mother who lost her child in a bomb blast, or goes through mourning because of some event in the city? Even Don Vito Corleone cared - but I doubt if he actually felt pain in the same manner as our "human" Don Subhash Nagar does. And that is perhaps the beauty of having come from the city of Mumbai.

Amitabh Bachchan has also sung one "Ganpati Aarti" in this movie and how brilliant it has become! It can be compared to Agnipath song "Deva Shree Ganesha" but is notch higher since Amitabh Bachchan is its singer.

One very interesting aspect of the movie is how brilliant other characters have also been in it. Ronit Roy as Gokul is as intense as Ajay Devgn used to be in some of his most brilliant movies and has proven him as one gem of a an actor. Manoj Bajpayee as Govind Deshpande, a sly politician reminds us of Rajneeti. And how about Jackie Shroff - a legend in himself? He has grown old but his charisma is still intact. There will never be another Jackie Shroff in Bollywood. Amit Sadh as Subhash Nagre's grand son is also brilliant - and this may be his one of the best acts. Yami Gautam as Amit's girlfriend is in a very different role from what she does, but she has done it very well. Another interesting character is Parag Tyagi as Raman - Ronit's mute brother. He should have joined WWE fighting with this Physique!

The best thing about Sarkar 3 is that it surprises you and keeps you guessing all through it and till the very end. Such brilliance is not often seen. The plot is balanced on its emotional quotient as well as has spirits of a crime thriller. The movie avoids showing graphic details of crime scenes and that is a welcome change. There are a lot of brilliant dialogues in it and there are several scenes which are acted just by eyes and expressions without any word spoken. Nothing about it is mundane. The coordination between camera, actors' expressions and the environment is just brilliant.

Sarkar 3 is another gem from the Sarkar series - perhaps even a notch better than the earlier ones.

- Rahul

[#Fashion] Thick Rimmed Geeky Glasses

So everyone is wearing "Thick (Black) Rimmed Glasses" these days. These are certainly the ongoing fashion trend. These glasses give a "Geek Look". And being "geek" is once again cool thanks to these glasses. Think of Satya Nadella - apart from his bald head what comes to your mind first when you remember him? Thick rimmed glasses! This is the revenge of the geeks.

I got my glasses when I reached high school. Studying long hours in the night under lamps and lanterns at home would naturally strain the eyes. But even without my brown carbon frame glasses I would have a serious "studious" look. But in the 80s when the air was pure and kids did not go to playschools, young folks seldom had glasses; and hence my specs created a buzz. So once I heard a friend talking to another - "I am also going to the Optical Shop tomorrow and I will also get one such carbon frame made for me - but with normal glass since my eye sight is alright". And guess what - in due course he indeed started wearing glasses! So much for the fake studious "look"?

Except these insecure kids who wanted to look geeky by wearing glasses, initially glasses were seen as unwanted burden. Look at our virtual heroes - from Super Man to Iron Man to Shaktiman to Rahul Gandhi - none of them wear any glasses at all, forget about wearing geeky glasses. Think of Salman, Hrithik, Ranveer or Ranbir - no one wears glasses. Hence the trend moved from carbon frame to slender silver /golden /titanium frames to half-frames and then to the "frame-less". The idea was to make the glasses subtle or unnoticeable. But then fashion trends move on a circle. And my friend who donned fake geeky glasses would have reached the corporate world and perhaps became insecure again and decided to do something about it.

The idea of black/brown thick rimmed glasses is to make those prominent and noticeable. These glasses would be the first thing to make an impression once you look at a person. Hence these glasses are also good for people with no natural facial feature being better than these specs; unless if you are Satya Nadella who has got his splendid shaven head. These thick glasses are also good for people of all types of complexions - whether light, dark or 'pimpled'. No wonder the trend is catching everyone like a flu!

The basic psychology behind these glasses is still amusing. Everyone wearing such glasses does not become geeky and intellectual just by the very act. But if wearing these gives them the self confidence and comfort which they seek, then what is wrong in it? Are not most other fashion trends from wearing high-heels to eye liners to keeping beards and wearing male-bracelets and getting tattoos of lions and tigers on our skin - all about trying to appear what we are not deep inside?

True intellectuals like Salman Rushdie, Arun Jaitley or Urjit Patel still do not wear such glasses. But then these are not men known for their fashion sense. And real fashion is not about being honest; it is always about being differentiated and confusing.

I still have no plans to wear these thick glasses. But not everyone is as self-content and unfashionable like me. And hence we shall have more people wearing these glasses in coming days, until one day when someone will recycle the trend of half-frame and no-frame glasses again.

- Rahul N. Tiwary

[#Personal] Looking Images!

You might have felt it too. It happens many times with us when somehow our thoughts are fixated about someone and we happen to see that person’s image in some unrelated person or thing. For example, as soon as I saw the picture of this little bird, what came to my mind? Image of my baby daughter!

Then I realized that the bird is looking a bit sad. So why should my daughter be sad? Because she is not with me and wants me to pick her up!

- Rahul

[#Journalism] Curious Case of Assault of an Air India staffer by a Shiv Sena MP

If you have frequently flown on Air India, you would have noticed that their staff would rank lowest in customer service. Their staff are often rude and treat you as if they are doing you great service by just letting you fly with them. For record, Air India was ranked as "third worst Airline in the World" just 2 months back (https://tinyurl.com/zop5uyx). It is in this background that I looked at the recent media-generated outrage against a politician for beating up an Air India staff with great curiosity and amusement.

I also noticed one thing repeated in all media reports - that the politician assaulted a "60-year-old duty manager". 60 years old and yet not retired? Oh yes - Air India was seeing an exodus of staff and hence a few years back it raised retirement age from 58 to 60. That is against the trend in sectors like airlines where younger and energetic staff is preferred. The media appeared to be highlighting the age of the duty  manager to garner public sympathy for him and against the MP. And it had to not mention the age of the MP which is 56 - just 4 years younger.

Next, the punishment suggested by media was of idiotic proportions. According to media, he should be sacked from parliament, banned by his party, not to mention named and shamed on national television for days and night - without caring about what adverse impact it could create on him and his family members. It reminded me the case of a tainted govt officer, whose family committed suicide after he was caught and received huge media attention. Any punishment should correspond to the gravity of the crime. The case should go to the court which should decide on the punishment; but media had already conducted "media trial" and need not bother about sanity.

The particulars of the case are interesting. The MP felt he was wronged (by not being given business class seat); hence remained seated in the aircraft after it landed; and declined to get down - something which is called "Satyagrah". Since the scuffle happened after planed had landed and no other passenger was on board, of course there was no threat to the other passengers.

Compare the case to what happened with popular comedian Kapil Sharma. Kapil was drunk and he abused and beat up his colleagues including Sunil Grower "in air" - and thereby was a threat to the flight as well as to other passengers. But no media houses asked for his ban from flying, or airing off of his TV show, or defamed him by playing the video 24X7. In fact a lot of TV news channels did not discuss this episode openly.

So why was the politician a recipient of such a bad press while the comedian was protected? Because of many reasons. The MP came from a background which is not trending. He is a tough looking male - member of a right wing political party without national presence - a politician who is not in power - all criteria made him ideal for victimization by the electronic media. On the other hand, Kapil is chubby and innocent looking - is a comedian with huge nation wide fan following - a man who is part of TV and Bollywood and hence highly powerful - all these factors make him ideal to play the victim rather than the assailant.

Thanks to the media, the rude staff of Air India are enjoying hero like status while an elected representative is paying huge price. What would be the repercussions of this event in the long run? If you are a customer of such government organizations - beware. Their spirits are high - if they can do this to an MP - who are you and me? Forget it. Just keep silence and tolerate all that happens with you - and then you are a good person. You may even come on TV someday.

- Rahul

... ~ गौरैया ~ ...

गौरैया - यह गोल-मटोल छोटी चिड़िया भला किसे अच्छी नहीं लगती होगी? मेरा विश्वास है कि गौरैया हम सब के बचपन की स्मृतियों का अभिन्न अंग होगी। मेरा बचपन तो छोटे शहर में गुजरा जहाँ झुंड-की-झुंड गौरैयाएँ आतीं, दाना चुगतीं और फुर्र से उड़ जातीं। बड़े शहरों में तो अब सिर्फ आलसी पक्षी कबूतर मिलते हैं - जो दूर से भले ही सुन्दर लगें, बालकनी और छज्जियों पर सिर्फ गन्दगी फैलाते हैं। गौरैयों से उनकी तुलना कहाँ! 

गौरैया इतनी सुन्दर शायद इसलिए भी लगती है क्योंकि वह छोटी होती है और इस कारण बचपन की याद दिलाती है। ज्यादा रंग बिरंगी नहीं होती, शायद इसलिए उसकी सादगी ज्यादा भाती है। उसकी आवाज भी 'चहचहाती' हुई बिल्कुल वैसी होती है जैसा उसका प्यारा सा व्यक्तित्व है।

आज 'अंतरराष्ट्रीय गौरैया दिवस' है जो कि हर साल २० मार्च को मनाया जाता है। यह याद दिलाने के लिए कि हमारे जीवन की आपाधापी में हम गौरैया जैसी पक्षियों को न भूल जाएँ और उनके प्राकृतिक वातावरण की कुछ चिंता जरूर करें। फादर-मदर-वुमन-डे जैसे विभिन्न दिवसों में से ये एक दिवस ऐसा है जो ह्रदय को वहाँ छूता है जहाँ और कोई दिन नहीं छूते। 

प्यारी गौरैया और उसके संगीत का आभार - हमारे बचपन में रंग भरने को सारी पक्षियों का आभार। 

- राहुल 

[#Movies] A Lot Like Love

This is a very interesting movie based on a theme on which a lot of movies have been made. You meet someone you know you want to spend whole life with but due to circumstances and either of you not being on the same page at the same time, you end up not meeting. You spend years separated, in between try to get together but somehow it does not work every time. In this movie, although the love (which looked like one sided) and at-first sight, devil appeared in the details and it never worked out. Such stories keep the viewers at the tenterhooks, who while secretly praying that the two meet again, also wonder if the movie were ‘happy ending’ or not. To the viewers, the two characters look foolish – that they were letting go something which was so amazing and pure. But how we look at ourselves is different from how we actually are. It is indeed foolishness to meet someone you get along so very well with, the person is so very interested in you, but you somehow you become too ‘wise’ and skeptic and let him/her go. It is indeed foolishness because that sacred liking is very hard to find and in most of probability you won’t find it again!

Not everything in life comes with replaceable or complimentary copies which can be retrieved afterwards. Most of the relationships are unique and what you feel about one person, you can’t feel about another. Hence it becomes very important to take decisions before it is too late.

I liked this movie as much for its ending as much for its story which was a roller coaster ride. I wish Emille should not have let Oliver go so many times. Perhaps one of the reasons why she was denying him was because it was Oliver who was making first moves and she did not find it interesting/challenging (as the theory goes) and hence became disappointed. But I loved Oliver’s character – he was so honest and pure.

Anyways, let me conclude this by saying that I loved this movie.

- Rahul

[#Politics] Irom Sharmila Losing Elections in Manipur

Among the medley of news on recently held assembly elections, one small news item said that Irom Sharmila who was fighting election against Manipur CM got only 90 votes and has quit politics now, vowing not to fight elections again. 

Irom, known as "Iron Lady", had done hunger strike for 16 long years protesting against Armed Forces Special Powers Act which grants special power to the security forces to search property without warrant and arrest people on suspicion of acting against the state. Such harsh a law is applicable only in the North Eastern states and in J&K, obviously because there are powerful separatist and insurgent forces working in these regions against the republic. 

Irom was not alone in her fight against AFSPA and her long hunger strike of course won't be possible without people's support for her cause. She was not untouched from politics; from Anna Hazare to Mamata Banerjee to Communist Party, all have been in touch with her in the past. Not to speak of social organizations who have rallied around her. She has received several international prizes commending her for human rights and non-violence; including Amnesty International and Asian Human Rights Commission. 

It is unbelievable how she was able to manage only 90 votes.  

Her 16 years long fast ended just last year in 2016; meaning she won't have lost relevance in public's memory. She was born and brought up in Manipur and lives there; meaning she was no outsider to the state. She is known all over India due to her hunger strike and her noble cause and hence the locals would definitely have positive opinion about her. The results of assembly elections including the high number of seats won by the BJP indicate that people were looking for a change. Then what happened that she got only 90 votes? Why would the masses who were with her during her hunger strike suddenly abandon her? What does her defeat tell about Indian democracy - positive or negative?

I think the fact that she lost elections in this manner tells good about Indian democracy. I guess people were aware that despite being a good person with a noble cause, she was unprepared and lacked political experience to make actual changes. Also, spending decades on a single purpose of repealing AFSPA did not raise confidence in people that she would be able to take the state forward in all counts of important issues like employment, security, health and education, which do matter to people. Her decision to "aim too high" by fighting against the CM would also have backfired against her; as people judged her by comparing her with the CM who was a senior leader. Looking at opposition party BJP's numbers, it appears that she would have done much better had she joined and fought on a BJP ticket. But the mature and "unsentimental" manner in which people discarded her as unfit in politics, speaks that Indian voters are prudent and logical. They care about their votes and don't want to spend it either on sentiments or on single causes alone. 

Despite the valid reasons, one can't remain without feeling sorry for her. That is why popularity can be so dangerous - it raises the expectations so high that disappointments become more severe and damaging. 

Elections are called celebrations of our democracy. Then no festival is celebrated in all homes. May the losing ones be strong and be able to get on their feet again. Because life must go on!

- Rahul

चारदीवारी

रेल यात्रा के दौरान सहयात्रियों में एक छोटे भाई-बहन भी थे। "पायल" नाम की बहन करीब ६ साल की थी और भाई १० का, जिसे वो बस "भाई" कह कर पुकारती। भाइयों के लिए सामान्यतः "भइया" शब्द ज्यादा प्रचलन में है, और "भाई" आजकल कहीं और की तुलना में बॉलीवुड के 'अंडर-वर्ल्ड' और सलमान खान की ज्यादा याद दिलाते हैं। तो भाई-बहन पूरी यात्रा में स्टोन-पेपर-सीज़र, और कौन ज्यादा देर तक साँस रोकता है - ऐसे बचपने के खेल खेलते रहे। पर इससे पहले कि मैं सोचता कि ये बच्चे "स्मार्टफोन" नामक बीमारी से अछूते हैं - वो अपनी माँ के स्मार्टफोन पर ऑडियो सॉंग्स सुनने लगे। और वो भी कैसे? ईयर-फोन के दोनों बड्स को अपने एक-एक कान में डाले और अपनी पतली-पतली आवाजों में गाते रहते। डब्बे में मौजूद बाकी यात्री उनके प्यार भरे बचपन से प्रभावित हुए बिना नहीं रह पाए। पर तब एक मजेदार बात हुई। 

ट्रेन एक ऐसे जगह से गुजर रही थी जहाँ खाली जमीन पर चारदीवारियां खिंची हुई थीं। भाई ने बहन से कहा "देखो" तो बहन ने देखा और बोल उठी - "उसे घेरा गया है ताकि बॉल उसके उधर न जा सके"। छह साल की पायल के लिए एक चारदीवारी का वही काम था - खेलते समय गेंद को उसके पार जाने से रोकना! कितना नादान पर अद्भुत वाक्य था वो! 

क्या हम सब उस बच्ची की तरह ही नादान नहीं हैं? चाहे जितना जान लो, जितना देख समझ लो - ज्ञान तो अनंत है। हमेशा काफी कुछ देखने, जानने और समझने के लिए शेष रहेगा ही! तो किसी भी चीज पर हमारी कोई भी समझदारी भरी बात "ताकि बॉल उसके उधर न जा सके" जैसी ही साबित हो सकती है! 

काश हमें हमेशा याद रहे कि हम कितना कम जानते हैं और कितने नादान हैं। मेरी रेल यात्रा के नन्हे सहयात्री मुझे यह सिखला गए।

- राहुल तिवारी

[#Social] A 7 Year Old Kid Writes to Google CEO

You might have come across this so called 'news' item which is going viral on the internet. It is a letter from a 7 year old kid to Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Here is a URL: http://www.thatscoop.com/article/ashwiniarunkumar/7-year-old-application-to-google

Reading the kid's letter I can't stop from observing how important "age" is for a child. A child tells one's age with such a pride as if it is an achievement! Then in the mid years we start looking at age as a thing to hide, perhaps embarrassed at it while always associating material success along with age. Only in the later part of life, perhaps we again start quoting our age, as once again age becomes a matter of our pride since it shows our accomplishment in the form of having led a life which truly is an achievement in itself. Our attempts to measure its worth by counting accomplishments is unnecessary and counter productive. 

Btw, Sundar's reply was as follows:

Sundar's reply to the kid was nice, though I would have preferred a colorful greeting card saying "thanks"; the kid would have loved it...

- Rahul Tiwary