My Ring

I used to wear a slim silver ring which had a pearl at its centre. I had been wearing it for around 15 years. After some years of use, it used to get loose and I would get it fixed by the silversmiths. In my hometown they would charge me only Rs 10 for the job. They would heat a pair of metallic tongs and press the metal around the stone, thereby fixing it.

I needed to get the same job done while I was in Mumbai. But I found no jewellery shop agreeing to do the job! And to my horror, they criticized me and had a ‘you are so cheap’ look in their eyes when they saw me wearing this ‘light’ and ‘thin’ ring! One after the other all jewellers offered to help me only if I agreed to get some more metal and get the ring remade as a heavier one. That would make them earn some hundreds of rupees and I would get a big heavy ring. I didn’t like the idea as it would give me flashy jewellery and was costly too, but I had no choice. If I didn’t agree with them, I would have to bear with wearing a loose ring which had the risk of the stone getting out and losing itself. Ultimately I agreed to their design.

Just some weeks afterwards, I felt an itch in my little finger with ring. I took out the ring and was shocked to see the skin below it. The skin was swollen, pinkish and very different! I removed the ring for some time and it became alright. I wore the ring again and faced the same problem! Water would go inside the ring and since the ring was too bulky and big, it would keep some water beneath – resulting in skin becoming wet and swollen. I got the ring enlarged a bit but now it became more uncomfortable to wear because of its weight. After hanging on with it for some more weeks, I permanently removed the ring. I lost my dear ring and the white pearl – the ring that had witnessed ‘life’ with me.

I realised that I had made a wrong decision by agreeing with the money-minded jewellers. My earlier ring was thin, light and comfortable. It was unnecessary to use a ‘big’ and ‘heavy’ ring. The jeweller gained by making a heavy and big ring for me, but I lost.

‘Less’ doesn’t necessarily mean ‘scarce’. We should be careful, because businessmen’s lust for money is creating an environment which doesn’t support those who are ‘content with less’. My dear ring gave me this message. I will try to get another thin and light ring made for me and will be content with it.

- Rahul

Lesson from illness

I had developed a boil on the skin of my leg. Within some days, it grew big and became painful. I consulted a doctor and started medication, but for initial days there was no respite. I had decided not to buy the pain-killer as was prescribed due to fear of side reactions. The boil was in no mood to give me any peace; and it pained all the day. Some puss came out initially; later on blood was all that I saw around. I didn’t tell anyone in the office about my illness. It was business as usual for others; but for me it was as if I saw every moment passing by.

I was in a meeting and we were discussing things. I was as usual at exterior and no one knew what pain I felt within. Suddenly it occurred to me if I could be sure that I was the only one in such a situation?

Everyday, we meet and interact with dozens of people. Some of them would be friendly, some others not so much. Some would be courteous, some others a bit rude. But many of them would be in a similar situation as I was in at the moment. May be, many of them would also be suffering from some illness which they won’t have told us about. Many others would have some problems and worries in their minds, which we would never know. Therefore, if we don’t find someone at his/her best or courteous enough, we should not judge one at sight.

We can’t see the whole truth. We can’t see what lies behind a face. Therefore, we should not conclude.

- Rahul

Fallen

One day, our office was converted into a Comedy Circus because someone fell down! But there was a very useful lesson in the end…

The time was just before lunch. There was a new person who was working since morning in a glass chamber near my cubicle. I had recently joined the company and didn’t know who he was. Just before lunch, there was a huge commotion near his cabin. When I went there, I found a group of people looking down at a point on the floor. I went in and saw it was the same gentleman, fallen down flat and apparently unconscious! I guessed a heart attack and asked to contact the control room for help. Suddenly, the peon entered the scene in haste and banged his head on the glass door – he had missed to see the transparent but visible door despite crossing it every day! It was a loud big-bang which later left its mark on his face in the form of a big swelling on the forehead. By this time people had made a discovery – there as a moveable chair which was lying broken!

Moving ahead, colleagues helped the fallen man on his feet. The man was huge – obese to be honest - and in his 50s. His age should generate some sympathy, if his situation was not enough to. The first thing he did after getting up was to say, “I have fallen like this (breaking a chair) for the first time in my life!” His statement appeared to be an explanation in the light of his weight! The high drama continued. He started sobbing, at the apparent ‘insult’ of having fallen down flat breaking a strong chair! Someone proposed and others obeyed – he was given a ‘pain-killer’ tablet. Someone else made the pantry-guy console him with two gulab-jamuns! It was not enough. People from other floors and divisions started pouring in to see the ‘accident’ scene by their own eyes! (People now days have perhaps lost either trust or patience or may be both!)

When I went for the lunch, another colleague asked me, “Rahul, why did you made the guy fell down”? I smiled and said I had done nothing (even nothing to help him). Next, I heard a huge laughter from another corner. Someone had asked another colleague the same question and he had replied with, “Gire hue ko kaun girayega?” (Who will make a ‘fallen-guy’ fall?) I couldn’t understand the joke! But the laughter it had generated had made me amused! How could they laugh at the poor fallen-guy in his mid-50s? I couldn’t understand it! Until it was close of office hours, when I got to know who the fallen-guy was.

The guy worked (for too many years) in the administration department and was a devil in the eyes of the employees for his unaccommodating nature. He would often harass them for small mistakes and would not try even a bit to help them. He enjoyed his position as a matter of prestige and since he was in admin he got too many opportunities to throw his weight around. It was because of this reason that no one really felt bad for him when he had fallen down. And hence the joke, “Who can make a ‘fallen-guy’ fell down”?

His ego of being ‘higher’ than the rest resulted in him getting into such an insulting ‘fallen’ position!

- Rahul

Instant Karma

Jaisa Karoge – Waisa Bharoge: As you sow so will you reap. All of us have heard this saying. Some days back I saw it happening in front of my eyes.

I was travelling to a locality which was not known to me, in an auto-rickshaw. To my surprise that auto-driver was highly uncooperative (as an exception to the extremely helpful Mumbai auto-wallahs). He was rude, non-responsive to queries and even pretended to be in half-sleep. Before getting into his rickshaw I had asked him about the place and he had nodded in affirmation. But after reaching nearby that place he showed complete ignorance to the place and the lanes. I needed to stop him and get down many times to ask for a proper way to reach. I was angry at his apathy and laziness. It was then that a traffic-policeman stopped him and took him away. When he returned back he told that he had crossed a red light in haste and hence was panelised with a bribe of Rs 100.

Reaching nearby my destination, I got down and left after paying him the basic fare. He complained about his loss of revenues due to the penalty – apparently hoping that I would help him with some tip. After having that kind of experience with him, the tip was hard to come by.

His lazy and inattentive attitude not only resulted in him getting penalised by a fine, but it also put me off to help him in anyway. Indeed that was an example of Instant Karma in action

- Rahul

Greed

How negative attitudes like greed are self-defeating can be seen in one of my recent experiences.

One of my friends was stuck up in his job and was eagerly looking out for a change. I helped him with fixing an interview with one of my previous employers. I was sure that he would get through and I assured him of a positive result in order to boost him up. Now when this guy saw something coming up to him, he showed some hidden traits. First, he increased his ‘expected salary’ to a level to match ‘my’ own present salary (perhaps showing envy to me). While doing this, he forgot that his educational/professional credentials never matched mine and hence his expectation was unjustified. Secondly, he cooked up his present salary to a very high level in order to justify the demanded jump. When I heard what he salary he had demanded in the interview, I was disappointed because I knew the company could never afford this salary for the open position. The result: even after renegotiating for several months, he didn’t get selected. And he has not got any further opportunities so far. The lost opportunity costed him dearly, and he was left in a frustrating condition. And after this experience I too would never help him again.

If only he could have been realistic – which was possible only if he didn’t possess greed – today he would be in a much contented position.

- Rahul

Roomie and Doggies

One of my ex-roommates told me a story about his leg injury:

One fine morning he was walking by the side of the road. Suddenly trouble arrived on wheels and on four legs. When he turned back, he watched in horror a motorbike zooming past him with a pack of dogs chasing it at full speed. Before he could understand anything, the bike had gone past and one of the dogs had run from in between his legs! Yes, while all dogs ran past him, one dog couldn’t wait to move sideways and found his path between his legs! My friend was stunned and paralysed, still not realising what had happened and he fell down on the road, hitting his leg badly. The drama didn’t end here!

As the dogs realised that this guy had fallen down; and perhaps also because the motorbike had vanished by the time; they returned back. They came near to the guy who was on ground, suffering in pain. The dogs started weeping (this was his guess), making a sound of mee-mee… He was conscious enough to recognise the dog which was the ‘one’ who had passed in between his legs and this dog was the most humble with wet eyes, as if showing sympathy and repenting what he had done! By this time, some people came and sent him off to a hospital.

When I heard this story which was funny indeed, I started laughing uncontrolled. My poor friend asked me not to laugh at him, though accepting that everyone so far who had heard this story had laughed without exception. Who won’t laugh at this funny incident? But the friend tells the bottom-line of the story: that day he realised how animals like dogs have also got sentiments and feelings of pain and sympathy for others! (I would add other ‘creatures’!)

This is called a humble learning gained at a costly expense!

- Rahul

Celebrity Worship and Our Attitude

When we were kids and we did something great '" like doing well in exams or winning a prize '" we would naturally like to show our achievements to all. We would love if people came to know how brilliant we were and if they patted us on the back. Not that we got many such opportunities. The reason was not that we were not brilliant, but our parents didn't allow us such appreciation. An achievement should be hidden '" may be not to make others envious of us; and children should not be praised much '" may be to prevent us from becoming proud and flattered '" this faculty got embedded in our psyche. Now I realize how good our parents were at what they did; or didn't do. I see it in the life of Tiger Woods and his parents.
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I read a report which says that on December 25th, 2009, there were at least 14 women with whom world # 1 golfer Tiger Woods had had an extra-marital affair. With him going deep into ever-appearing sex-scandals; no one wants to idolize him anymore. Accenture has broken their sponsorship with him; and so have many other companies which were using him as brand ambassadors till now.
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Tiger Woods was a child prodigy. He started playing golf from the age of 2. No doubt, he reached the top and personified excellence in the golf grounds. Tiger Wood’s parents have been very proud of him. But even without my parent's standards it seems their pride in 'him' broke all boundaries:
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“Tiger will do more than any other man in history to change the course of humanity. ' He is the Chosen One. He’ll have the power to impact nations. Not people. Nations.” '" Earl Woods, Tiger Wood’s father.
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“Tiger has Thai, African, Chinese, American Indian, and European blood. He can hold everyone together. He is the Universal Child.” '" Kultida Woods, Tiger Wood’s mother.
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Today, I wonder if Earl or Kultida Woods would stand by their words. I wonder how they celebrated Tiger Wood’s birthday just yesterday (Dec 30th)?
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Earl Woods was of mixed African American, Chinese and Native American ancestry. Kultida Woods is of mixed Thai, Chinese, and Dutch ancestry. Tiger Woods refers to his ethnic make-up as 'CaBlInAsian' (CAucasian, BLack, (American) INdian, and ASIAN). Did his 'genes' and ancestry give him some advantage? Apparently, this is what his father and mother thought! Still, if we accept their logic - that he having blood from various ancestries and races would unify all nations and would do 'more' than any other man in history - then we would also have to accept that in this way he would inherit the 'negatives' too! Isn't it so? Then did he get his spiritual void - which needed several women and lot of sex to fill with - all because of his 'lack of stability' '" stemming from his mixed genes and confused inheritance? I wish we don’t believe in this theory! I wish we call his parent’s proud statements as their merely emotional outpouring…
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But the problem is: until such Tigers show their real face, we tend to accept all the theories going around them. As it happens in Bollywood movies, the evildoer gets punished only at the end of the story! Before that, the heroes struggle and the villains eat drink and enjoy. So this brings me to one very nice thought: 'What we see may not be the truth.'
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What do we do then? Should we stop idolizing anyone? Should we stop being fans of celebrities like Michael Jackson (whom we find one day accused of paedophilia)? Should we stop supporting sportsmen whom we all love to connect with? What will be a life without a Sachin Tendulkar, Diego Maradona and … (Barack Obama) - the superstars in our eyes?
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I think the answer can be more tilted towards yes, rather than a no. Why do we ‘idolize’ personalities? Is it because somewhere we are trying to hide our own ‘mediocrity’ by clouding us with the celebrity worship? Does celebrity worship give us a momentary false sense of high that we need to get out of mundane days and nights which we keep ploughing through? I think the answer is close to yes.
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I have a strong feeling that we should not idolize anyone. Because when we idolize someone ‘else’, we in a way abuse our own ’self’. Hindu philosophy would say that all of us have the same God inside us (and hence no one is greater or lower). Even if someone’s self is more awakened than ours it doesn’t mean we are ’small’ in comparison. Self development is only matter of time. Also, we should avoid trying to find solace outside in ‘external’ sources. Idolizing personalities and celebrities is a sure way of getting motivation and ‘feel good’ because of ‘external’ sources. Such external sources will change or digress one day and we may be left with a deepened void.
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Just like we know the phrase “Hate the crime, not the criminal”, I think we should also keep this attitude of “Appreciate the deed, not the doer”. Appreciating the doer fulfills one's ego and makes him/her proud. Appreciating his deed inspires others to “do like him” rather than “be like him”. There is a vast difference between the two.
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I think it is the Kali Yuga when no “absolute goodness” and no “absolute evil” would exist. Since we can’t change or even affect the celebrities and personalities we idolize, we should keep this attitude of aloofness and personal-detachment from them. Otherwise, if someone grew up being a fan of some exceptional performer and this idol turns out to be the face of evil at the end of his/her life, it would be a psychological disaster.
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Let us make the spirit of 'doing good' immortal. Doers may come and go. So the talent of Tiger Woods will be remembered; yet Tiger Woods won't be idolized. The 'sportsman' inside Tiger Woods will be praised; yet the 'man' inside him would be detested. If this was the message that Tiger Wood's life was to give to all of us '" I am happy even with his revelations.
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- Rahul

How others convert to Hinduism?

We all know how institutionalized the process of conversion to other religions like Christianity and Islam is. But many of us are not aware of the exact process to convert to Hinduism.

Most of the time even if someone from other faith expresses his/her willingness to know about conversion to Hinduism, we ourselves are not able to tell and explain the process to them. It is time we keep ourselves aware enough.

I think though Hinduism didn’t have this concept of in and out as conversion, now situation demanded us to make a systematic attempt in this regard. I came to know that Arya Samaj has been hugely successful in this area.

I read that Government has authorized Arya Samaj to convert (or reconvert) people into Hinduism and the organization even issues certificates to the converts. They do suddhi (purification) ceremony along with Vedic rites and welcome the person to our dharma.

Such converts are not given any caste as such and this is a good thing because castes were more of a social system and our original texts didn’t prescribe birth-based castes.

The converts who went out of Hinduism should seriously think about returning back. If they had heart to do the sin (in a way) by converting to other religions after being misled and persuaded, they should also have the courage to repent and correct themselves.

If we come to know of anyone willing to convert to Hinduism, we should try to make him/her get in touch with local branch of Arya Samaj.

(Please correct me if I am wrong. I got to know about Arya Samaj being authorized for conversion by reading articles on the net. We would also like to know if there are other organisations too who can convert/recovert others into Hinduism.)

Help

While I was walking towards home, I saw two small kids coming from the opposite direction. When we got nearer, I saw that the younger of the two had stopped and was looking at me. He would be of around 3, a very lovely young boy, may be from some nearby area When I asked what had happened, he said something while raising and giving his arm to me. I got to know that he wanted me to help him cross the road. I held his hand and made him cross the road. When he successfully crossed the road, he said something in his child's language to the other kid on the other side of the road. (May be they had quarreled and the other elder kid had declined to help him cross the road)

It was interesting to see how easily the kid asked for help. He didn't have any ego, nor did he fear the possibility of being rejected. He also knew it well that there was danger in crossing the road by himself and hence he chose asked for help.

How many times, when faced with a problem, we tend to make it tough by choosing not to ask for a help. If we try on our own, we may be hurt or may end up doing a mistake, or some times we would ask for a help too late We also have fear of rejection, and the worse thing is that our fear is not wrong: we grown ups carry our egos with us.

Still, our life would be much better if we ask for help when required The basic premise is that all of us can't be good in all respects and hence all of us would benefit if we help each other out in our areas of expertise.

But no help would come, if we don't ask for it.

(Rahul)

Gandhi’s Revenge and Colonial Humor

There won’t be many other used and abused surnames like a ‘Gandhi’. In his own India where he is revered as ‘Father of the nation’, the ‘Gandhi’ surname was hijacked by the daughter and grandchildren of Pandit Nehru. Gandhi was a larger than life brand, and everyone exploited it enough. The places where Gandhi has been used span from advertising, music, corporate communication, political speeches, and where not. (Do you know that a founder member of pro-Islamic and anti-White band Fun-Da-Mental Aki Nawaz uses a stage name of Propa-Gandhi?)

The word Gandhi stands for something that no other word epitomizes – power of unadulterated righteousness and a giant strength of character. After decades of his earthly demise, Gandhi and his principles remain intact. In fact Gandhism seems to have grown into a full fledged subject with wide scope of studies. In a curious encounter with the same name, I found a phrase which sounded interesting. It’s called “Gandhi’s Revenge”.

At first glance, the phrase “Gandhi’s Revenge” seemed derogatory for Indians. Plainly put, “Gandhi’s Revenge” is British slang for diarrhea. I thought to find more facts behind this term.

The original phenomenon is called Travelers’ Diarrhea (TD). Due to poor hygiene and drinking untreated water, travelers all across the world suffer from diarrhea. Most such cases are self-limited (it resolves itself in 3-5 days) and are mostly caused by bacterium like E-Coli. Every year, 20-50% of international travelers suffer from TD. It is interesting to note that the local people don’t suffer from these infections even after eating same food or drinking same water. Repeated exposure to pathogens develop immunity in local population (it takes some years to develop immunity; though immunity disappears sometime after becoming non-exposed to the conditions). Travelers all across the world have always suffered because of this phenomenon. The corresponding term for backpackers and outdoor recreationalists is called Wilderness Diarrhea (WD).

Some other very innovative phrases have come out of this phenomenon. One original one is Montezuma's Revenge. Montezuma's Revenge is slang for travelers' diarrhea or other sicknesses contracted by tourists visiting Mexico. (Montezuma II, the emperor of Mexico from 1502 to 1520 is remembered in history as a weak and indecisive emperor during whose regime Spanish conquest of Mexico and the subsequent destruction of the Aztec civilization happened). It is estimated that 40% of foreign travelers visiting Mexico suffer from TD which is called Montezuma's Revenge.

The revenge element in the phrase comes because the country was once colonized by a stronger country (e.g. Mexico by Spain) and now, in this small way (by making travelers sick with diarrhea), it is getting its own back! In Japan, the phrase is known as Tokyo Trots, in Myanmar it’s the Rangoon Runs, and similarly in India its Gandhi's Revenge. There is even one particularly for Delhi: Delhi Belly! All these phrases came into being at different points of time; some of them are recent while some are decades old.

If we think then in a way Gandhi has been made to enter inside our lavatories. Relating Gandhi with a thing as naïve as a stomach upset seems funny. The man whose one call sent severs down the spine of the British; would his revenge be anywhere as impotent as upsetting the stomach of a foreign traveler? If we think about the defeated king Montezuma of Mexico, he can still be in place to receive such ridicule. But Gandhi didn’t deserve it for sure… Gandhi was neither a defeated king nor a disgraced individual as Montezuma II was, but still if the British tried to make him immortalized in such a phrase, then it’s we who have to decide whether we need to carry these burdens of the colonial era. I would call this a Colonial Ridicule.

I think the phrases and slang like ‘Gandhi’s Revenge’ which are symbols of British Colonial pride should be avoided by all of us. With India rising, the days are not far when India will overpower and leave behind ‘small nations’ with ‘long noses’ like the GB. When it happens, the term ‘Great’ along with ‘Britain’ would be ridiculing enough for them (I think it is still ridiculing, given the colonial exploitations done to attain Greatness). If time is the best teacher, then the British still have some lessons to learn for their sense of humor.

(Rahul)

Baby Talk

Lessons from the Kiddo – Twenty minutes in the Bus

It was a usual Mumbai morning when I boarded a local bus. After some time I started hearing some chuckles from nearby. It was a baby, who was chattering around. I saw that a Muslim family had boarded the bus and that baby was with them; in his father’s hands. They had not got a seat yet and hence were standing. Then I heard some more noises, and found it was his little sister standing on her own. They were five of them – father, mother, baby boy, his little sister, and a lady in a burqa. The baby boy would be around one and a half years old and the girl would be of around three and a half or four. I looked up from my seat to get to see him clearly. He was a very cute little baby and he kept babbling; perhaps he was talking to his father. I couldn’t stop but smile wide, looking at him. Now the baby noticed me smiling at him! Our eyes met for some moments and all of a sudden, he jumped to get into my lap, with his both arms stretched towards me! His father stopped him from falling into my lap, as I sighed and looked away… After next stop they got a vacant seat just in front of mine and the two ladies with the two babies occupied it. Now, the real fun began…

After hyperactively doing a lot of things and making lots of noises, accidentally the baby boy snatched his sister’s hair. His sister was a baby too and she couldn’t tolerate this insult; so she pulled his hair in return! It was an uncomfortable sight, to see a two year old baby’s small hair being pulled up… The boy was shocked and couldn’t react for some moments, but when he realised what was done to him by his sister, he made a crying face! A moment later, his hands reached out to his sister’s hair and he pulled her hair with all his energy! The girl tried to protect herself, all the while she reached for his head again! This continued for some uncomfortable five minutes while their amused parents watched them fighting… Then the kids were separated and made to stop their bitter fight.

Suddenly, the baby boy found a stainless steel strip of the nearby window interesting enough. It was a shining piece, almost like a mirror. As soon as the kid found it attractive, he reached out at it with his open mouth and started licking it! I sighed and saw him with awe…

Twenty minutes in the bus with the kids, I saw so many emotions in the play… Baby tried to talk to his father with his babbles… As soon as the baby saw a friendly person in me, he tried to leap into my lap… When he hit his sister, she retaliated with equal force and he too went into a ‘hairy’ war with her… As soon as he found a piece of steel amusing enough, he ran to feel it with his mouth… So humane and so natural…

I realised that feelings of we loving others (him talking to father), our need to be loved (he running into my lap), to retaliate and hit back (fights between him and his sister), to enjoy nice things we find in life (he licking the shining steel), are just some very humane and natural ways we act like…

There is no mistake in we over-stretching ourselves a bit to love others; there is no wrong in seeking love from others; no harm in hitting back in defence; and no sin in enjoying good things we have in life…

Life should be lived naturally, humanly, and baby-like…

(Rahul)

Wishing you a very Happy and Prosperous Diwali! May this festival of lights bring loads of happiness and positive things to you…

The Pencil Sharpener

The Pencil Sharpener and Lessons from My Temptations

Our company launched a campaign in collaboration with an NGO called Goonj which works in the social sector. The idea was to collect some old discarded household items and then gift these to the economically poor in the tribal areas. I also tried to participate. I searched for some old clothes that had remained with me, and I also motivated some other personal friends to donate. I carried these items with me to my office. I had to deposit these anonymously in a collection box. I had a feeling that I was not doing enough, and hence I decided to buy something else to donate. I decided that pencils for children would be the best. If I donated some other new items, those may be sold / stolen; and the fact that mainly children use pencils made me feel good about it. I went to a shop to buy some packets of pencils on my way. There was a surprise for me there. It seemed the funny guy from TV who used to hit a sixer at the last ball in Nataraj Pencil Ad shouted from somewhere: “Nataraj Pencil ke har pack ke saath ab ek pencil sharpner aur ek eraser bilkul muft!” Now since I got many pencil sharpeners and erasers for free, I though I would keep one pencil sharpener with me and would gift remaining in the collection box. While I left the shop with that lone pencil sharpener in my pocket and remaining in the poly-bag, something chanced upon me all of a sudden…

“Why was that I wanted to keep that one pencil sharpener with me?” Gifting something for the cause was not compulsory as such, and many colleagues were not contributing. So it was not about being selfish. I already had a pencil sharpener with me personally – it meant I didn’t require another one as such. Then I realised I was not happy with my old pencil sharpener. Why? Because it was old! This new one was such a shining one and a red one and a bigger one! Ok, so it was attraction! Was this attraction justified? I thought if I didn’t keep that pencil sharpener with me, then it would definitely go to some tribal area and some very poor kid would use it some time. Also, I don’t use pencils very often and I don’t remember the last time I had to use a sharpener! I now wondered if my decision to keep that one piece with me was shameful… Taking a decision, I took that lone shining, red and big pencil sharpener out of my pocket and kept it along with other items in the bag…

I then tried to understand why I was so attracted towards that pencil sharpener. If I tell this event to anyone else, s/he would laugh at me and would call it childish! Yes, it was definitely childish - because whenever I remember a pencil sharpener, the first image that comes to my mind is my instrument box (pencil box) from my school days. Secondly – I sharpening my pencil, and some times the graphite point of the pencil would break. Some sharpeners would be misaligned and they would keep breaking the pencil points. Some times I would also use an old shaving-blade to sharpen the pencil. I would always keep a pencil sharpener in my pencil box – that would make me feel a proud and prepared student. When I would go to exams others would always forget theirs and would ask it from me. Now that so many images start coming in my mind, I got to understand that it must be some unfulfilled desire from my childhood – to have many shining, red, and big pencil sharpeners with me – and that would have made me get attracted to the pencil sharpener even now. I recalled that my childhood was not spent in scarcity by any standards and the wish to have ‘many’ and ‘more’ stationary items with me is actually the wish of every child. When I realised all this, I thought it was only fair if I allow another child from some remote tribal area to share the same pleasure that I cherish – of keeping a nice pencil sharpener with me…

Very often, some selfish, wrong, weird, or even shameful thoughts come to us. Those thoughts don’t prove that we are bad or corrupt. Having a strict control over our thoughts is not easy – but we can very well control our actions. This is what I did – discarding my thoughts of childish cravings for having that pencil sharpener, I allowed some other child to enjoy the same…

(Rahul)

Durga Darshan

Durga Puja at Tembi Naka, Thane West

The picture attached with this article is one of the most vibrant images of Durga Ma I have ever seen. Recently when a friend sent this picture to me as Durgapuja greetings, I asked her if she could find out where this Durga idol was situated at. She said it was in a Puja Pandal near Tembi Naka in Thane West. I didn’t believe her – I thought this beautiful idol must be installed in some very big temple. An internet search didn’t give any clue and hence I decided to visit this place itself, to see Ma Durga there…

It so happened that I couldn’t go to Thane even on the day of Durga Navmi. It would have been a journey of more than an hour to reach there – and I was not sure if I will find this very idol of Durga ji there. Afternoon of Dashmi – and time was running fast. Suddenly, I felt it was now or never. Seeing this very idol of Durga ji was my dream – and I decided to take chance.

This place is called Tembi (or Tembhi) Naka in Thane West. It is not far from the railway station and buses reach this place from most of locations in Thane. Another landmark here is a big Jain Mandir which I had visited some years ago with a friend. The roads were very crowded – much more than non-festive days. I got down near the Puja Pandal, and became part of the group of devotees watching and praying to Her. It’s a huge arrangement, decorations done on a grand scale, and everything was very systematic. I saw Durga ji from a distance, and kept looking at her to be sure if she was the same :). Now what I witnessed, I will never forget in life. A yagya was under process. The sacred fire in the hawan kunda was rising very high. A couple was presiding there, with the man wearing dhoti–kurta, and the lady had put up bright saree and traditional ornaments. More than a dozen Brahmins were chanting Vedic mantras and the whole atmosphere was full of positive energy and vivacity. They kept putting offerings in the hawan kunda and Agni Devta took all of those; in turn producing heat, light, dhoop and smoke which purified the whole environment. Durga ji’s idol was installed far away at a higher platform and it seemed she kept watching all of us…

Durga Shakti is the divine energy – the beginning of this whole universe – the reason of all that ever happens – she is the cosmic energy – the sacred force – the feminine creative power – the great divine Mother in Hinduism…

India is the land of festivals. Hindu festivals, representing their unstoppable fervour and unmatched spirit of liveliness, are not invented with any particular purpose – they are simply part of our life. Just outside Her temple, the same life and energy spread itself in the form of countless colourful shops. On both sides of the road, there was a fair like situation. It attracted children with plenty of toys and items to splurge on. (I found an office of Anand Sangh there, though I couldn’t find out if this organisation was behind this puja organisation too.) Very nearby, an organised formal fair (mela) was running. I entered, remembering the mela, fair, circus, and pradarshini (exhibitions) that our hometown used to sport every year when we were young.

There were lines of shops selling toys, gol gappe, laddoos, and fashion accessories. Then there were stalls offering sports and games – use the airgun to shoot balloons – or throw rings to win the items kept on table – I never imagined we could enjoy gaon ke mele ki masti here too! There were merry-go-rounds and big jhoolas: one of them had motorbikes on which a baby boy sat in style but started crying when the speed got higher. Little girls, some times troubling their fathers with their demands, looked around curiously. Then, one of the STAR attractions – The Magic Show! The magician’s name was Jadoogar Bhairwi! And the name of the show left me rolling in laughter – it was called ‘Dil-bahaar Mayajaal’! :) Jadoogarni Bhairwi was on the stage with her eyes closed with a black mask. She hit another girl with a long knife – aiming at the apple that this bichari girl had kept on her belly while she lied on a table. And she was perfect – she hit the apple and escaped the girl! The artificial clapping applauded her with great sense of magic! :)

This area is just adjacent to Talao-pali (Masunda lake). This is a lake in which boats take the merrymaking families on the rounds. In the midst of the pond lies an island while the closed lake is surrounded by a circle with seating arrangements. A great festive environment indeed…

If you happen to be around this place during the next Durga Puja, do visit the Tembi Naka in Thane West. There is something there for each one of you… Soulful bhakti and heartfelt masti, if that’s the spirit of festivals in India, then its alive here in all its elements…

(Rahul)