~ A Grave that was...~

He died in peace, hope so and he is being terribly missed – a fact that one can accentuate when one sees pigeons around his ‘Grave’ which was dig up by a noble soul visiting the park. A feather was put on it resembling the lost honour of the pigeon group.

Birds mourn! I could see the semblance in-live and could not believe my eyes, as a daily rote of spending time with birds, pigeons and crows, my early morning saga was quite different today – whilst I  visit a particular spot where all of the pigeons and crows assemble to have their morning fiesta – millets , which many offer them – some out of a ritual and others to please gods!  

Today the departed souls friends of departed soul were mournful and they had a peculiar way of making their presence felt – they were hovering around his grave and some were just loitering around the grave.

Seeing the grave, it was an ode to the pigeon by a compassionate soul, don’t know who he/she was but whomsoever did it had a compassion for life and towards a dignity of a sound burial the pigeon deserved, else it might have been subject to the food of dogs and other mongrels.

The mood was agnostic amongst the birds and they were just not interested in leaving their friend in all loneliness, I realized the pain they must be going through, it was quite evident – though I would never be able to know how the pigeon died or might have been killed by street dogs who roam in plenty in the park and are on a continuous prowl for such preys.The scene  was quite solemn to be kept in mind for the whole day as it was the first time I was seeing mourning of the birds and their continuous chirping as if to tell the whole world what had happened, though many of the birds don’t find such a respectful farewell – in fact, Birds and pigeons die in their nest or are generally caught and eaten up and that is why we cant see their bodies quite often.

The millets lay as they were for some time but were eaten up by the pigeons who later came in groups and started their daily chores – I

t seems that suddenly the mood of the flock of pigeons got changed as they unanimously accepted the hard truth of life and that is ‘Death’ , the business of living had overtaken their mourning and they quickly finished their daily morning breakfast to fly again and swirl around the park as they usually do… it was a sight worth seeing… they already had learnt the lesson well.. and they seem to be have taught it too, to the earnest seeker…. !!!

~ Happytude, A Way of Life... ~

 So, what can a pursuit of happiness take you to – you can’t imagine the degree to which you can go and stretch yourself and find the real smile on your face. That effusive smile for which you may have struggled for ages and have climbed mountains, burnt the midnight oil or at times have gone completely berserk for that inner feeling of calmness. So, when more than 4.4 million people resign in America to do what makes them really ‘Happy & Contended”, it means something. 

The inner jolt that may have prompted them to go for the final assault and detach themselves knowingly fully well what they are doing or what could be the repercussions of their decision. Many have struggle to reach at the pinnacle of their success and where they are today but found out that ‘Happiness’ is still effusive and a fantasy – like a mirage in the desert which makes you run miles and on reaching the particular spot, you find not a drop of water! 

Many of the quitters wanted to do something of their own – probably the time had come to take the plunge, many others were bored of the daily rigmarole of office life which made them do repeated things and they seem to be getting dump, still others just wanted to take a break and wanted to pursue their passion – gaming, trekking, writing, travelling and other such activities which they had been postponing till eternity. Many of them have thought of joining happiness and laughter classes to feel that elusive emotion called ‘happiness’ which God had already given to us, but we unconsciously buried it under the weight of our falsifying aims and aspirations!

Covid has greatly leveraged their business of thought – while humanity has seen unforeseeable deaths in the near path, that too in developed nations, people’s imagination has started to wander around that big question “ Is it me for the next time and in the next wave?” – this question has jolted us many a time and hence the focus has changed to splurge on the goodies of the universe – many have started to explore new and unheard opportunities which life could have offered them in their mundane existence….

Nowadays, you will generally feel the change in the nature of people, many have gone the compassionate way, or have started to being more thoughtful, more god fearing and of helping nature and have turned humane, all these activities and gestures make them internal happy and they feel the calmness in their soul – or they may have turned God fearing from  – things have changed since past two years, it is huge change in the mindset of people induced by Covid and its aftermath.

 For many, the adage “Happiness is the greatest skill that one will ever learn!”, has turning out to be a practical lesson to emulate – with hovering uncertainties of life, thoughtful souls have started to do things they always loved. So next time you see someone sitting down in the park under the sun along a company of tumbler throwing out wave like steam, beware, he could be a professional who has just take a ‘conscious break’ and started to think laterally about his life and what he wants to do with it…..for the rest it would be business as usual…

~ A Daily Rendevouz...~

Its his everyday feature and that he has been doing this since long , may be decades – ask him this question as to why he does this and his quirky answer is “ Its bliss…” , many of us wont follow his meaning of this as we have not reached a level of understanding what universe is all about, but certainly not him.

His reticence is broken when he talks with his favorite everyday friends, the pigeons and crows throng him when he visits them everyday at a particular spot he has chosen to give them their daily meal of millets – the birds ( though very few of them in Delhi now) and the pigeons love it whilst they cherish their daily succour, for the crows it is an overnight bread or other sundry home leftovers.

The sight is just worth watching, the man, in his mid-60’s has formed a formidable friendship with his morning friends, the chirping and the caws of the crow is an admission that they are happy too while enjoying the company of him.

Shubash is his name as his friends call him  and he is alone in this world, he is a bachelor and never married – he retired from a government school and since then is living happily in his solitude as he has made some retired fellows as his friends to talk. Much of his time, he spends in the park co-cooing with his friends and birds and crows. The dogs love him as well as he brings for them their daily meal of milk ( as he buys it from across the road mother daily) and they come tail wagging seeing him – the sight is not liked by birds and crows as they have to reluctantly leave their daily feed and take a short fly up to the branches for the dogs to finish their gulp!

I see him talking to the crows and the pigeons in a peculiar gesture which he only can make me understand, though he has tried once but I have not reached the level of understanding. “It gives me peace of mind and I feel I am feeding my family whilst I do so regularly, the day when I don’t come – which is not quite often, they keep a waiting gaze from the park gate – I have myself seen them jumping and howling when they see me appearing unexpectedly, such is the love they shower on me!, I just reciprocate…”

As I start to do my daily jog, I see him smiling and feeding them with love – it is a splendid sight to see and emulate for all of us to love and care of the animals and other beings, they are as important to us as other beings – for they have the same insatiable feelings of being wanted and loved and caressed…as we would like our families to be… being at the top of the food chain does not honour us to ignore them out of our ego and pride…. The day when we would start to see and behave in the lateral sense, nature would start bestowing its goodies on us…unknowingly and unwantedly…for you have passed the test and have qualified its benevolence….start practicing to see the results….

~ Our New Guest…~

She has formed her own throne, there is no time she comes and pays us a visit but when she comes, she makes no noise and makes her presence felt via a silent image. She sometimes “meows” to make us all believe that she is just sitting outside but when we get to see our new guest, she gets cautious as her eyes tells us.

It was today that she meowed after a while as I could not see her presence in near past, all sorts of demon thoughts made into my mind as she has no less enemies in our vicinity – the canines are well aware of her presence and always are on the prowl – she knows this fact and has been stalwartly fighting her presence in the street. We sometimes hear the cat-fight she does with her siblings as she has one or two, this makes the street canines aware of their location but the winter sun makes them as lethargic as they shamelessly lay bare on the pathways not to care about their hunt!

The night belongs to the dogs as much as it is for the dinner for the feline , she comes sheepishly to have her evening sustenance but is equally aware of the hunt she can be a subject to – she knows that her foes are awake and active in the night as they foolishly bark under the darkness of the long wintery night…

The cat and dog game continues to intrigue us as this a new marvel in our locale but it is as much of  interesting parable she has become the cynosure of all eyes to see. She is beautiful and dusky; her intriguing and sharp looks excites us all. I have not been able to make her my friend though she knows and recognizes us amply. Many a time, she has paid us a visit secretly and we didn’t had her presence felt , the only evidence she leaves is the mud ridden paw marks on our invertor…the kids love the saga and eagerly await her next visit…

Sometimes the kitten comes with her sibling looking for her evening meal but finds nothing to nourish on, not even the leftovers of her rivals, though she still might have a plan be as I see her often storing her meal for those bad times. She surely has an advantage of being frisk and agile in her movement quite unlike the bunch of mongrels who run after her not to catch her at the end. The race is comfortable won by the cat as she stands the champion of the marathon, a quick jump over the tree is her life savior and the dogs then helplessly wait for her to come down. Soon after , the patience of these mongrels die down and they walk away for their own walk but the cat is as aware as she can be and comes down after a careful recce of the situation, after all its her life and she owns the sole responsibility of it!!!

~ The Future they Saw…~

 They both had a vision and they are living a dream – god gave them less of a normal life but they made much more out of the life they are living…. The challenges were accepted with an aplomb … Manoj and Shiv became friends by a common cause – their lack of sight, though Manoj is a partially blind and acts as a “Eyesight” to Shiv , both are each others support system. They met in a blind school but soon became friends as their interest match – both wanted to open a school for the blind children…. they indeed did!

The initial struggle did pose a hurdle, but when stakes are high and the resolve is resolute, you get to where you want… Today , I met them again, as they are a regular feature in our block, asking for funds for the kiddos ..the number has turned out to be 35, with two of them doing their graduation, many of them are in their early teens and are in primary and junior wing.

So what made them stand against all odds….it was a five letter word ‘Faith’ …Manoj is himself a graduate…and wanted to teach kids with visual disabilities, the challenges he faced should not be a stopping point for others. Shiv became his assistance as he was father of one of Manoj’s student. Both are on the formidable task which the able bodied would defy to take…

So, what was the tipping point as I casually asked him? – “I came across a partially blind girl sitting at home as her mother was a homemaker and her father was a rickshaw puller! – that was the tipping point for me to take the plunge. And I did… I gave her home tuitions for class 4^th in braille…and she passed class 12^th through this arrangement… the word of mouth spread and rest as they say is history.

“Didn’t you faced strong opposition from the situation you were in?” , as I asked Manoj, “Yes, I did , but my aim of life was to teach the visually handicapped, that is why I was made like this ….!” – his revert was everything to me…. Having a morning chat with such pulsating soul surely gives you the adrenaline rush to stand up and start walking…

They run a blind school for girls primarily from a dilapidated rented Shanty with little help from sundry, the clothes they wear and the situation in which they live is a testimony to their dire living but all is in their resolve and the journey is continuing… All they earn is the blessings of those girls who are out-casted as a nobody by the society but are made to believe in themselves…. For persons like Manoj and Shiv, all I can say is “”All the best , may God be with you in your karma which you have so rightly made your own” ….until I meet them next time… for which the count down has earnestly begun…

~ A Day Would Come...~

 He was my oldest friend who used to carry the everlasting youthfulness in his aura…. Speak to him anytime of the day and he would be refreshed with his talks and actions, be it buying a surprise drink or treating an unknown person with an ice-cream, he was all vivacious and at its best…all time of the day…

Today seeing him lifeless whilst he was being carried in a hearsay van reminded me of his words which he told me not just too long ago…. “Beta, yeh zindagi hai aisi hi chalegi… bas chaltey jao…bulawa aa hi jayega…” (Son, this is life and it would lead the way it would, one day your time will come to say goodbye to this world!) … a streak of tear flowed through and a feeling of sadness engulfed me… questioning God was futile as this is the way world has been… souls would come and form a bond and relationships and one day they would move on...

The rule of the game is simple “ Enjoy your streak in this world with limited time, the veil of saying goodbye will be raised anytime – it would not be taken into consideration if you are a king or a pauper, if its your day to go , you just have to! – today was his day and I became a mute witness…just helpless and all I could say was “Bye Bye...” As I knew him, he surely lived a life “the Gita way…” , doing his Karma and taking up his societal and family responsibilities in equal measure…but the chapter would close for all of us like this…and no differently…

Being emotional beings, we still cherish the ground covered on the pace of time, we will play, fight and would do insane things , as brothers and sisters, sons and daughters, we will all live in togetherness but when suddenly someone departs, a void gets generated as we have tend to become so used to seeing this person everyday and taking him/her for all granted in our daily chores of our living. This remains tend to remain deep within us for some time but then the journey of time begins and we tend to forget the soul which once seemed indispensable in your life, but time plays its tune and life moves on… 

The great miracle of birth and death would keep on happening on this planet… we would live on, leaving a memory to cherish for some time and then we would soon become oblivious in the sands of time…that’s life…

Adieu Sabharwal Uncle, may you find peace and be our darling angel and guide us on our present sojourn on earth…I know the bodily pain you were going through was unbearable sometimes… my spending time with you whilst you met me adhoc would remain ingrained in me for life… As a toddler and as a young man… you have seen me grow…but now as they say ...” "Death never takes a wise man by surprise; he is always ready to go. ", you were the one well prepared for the final sojourn to heaven….

At the end six feet of earth makes us all equal and one day this would happen to all of us… till then goodbye and thanks for being a friend and a prudent guide…. Amen!

~ Fag end Friendships…~

They have done their life tasks and are sitting with each other having ‘Pakoras’ and ‘Samosas’. Many of them are toothless and have hit the octogenarian stamp on their identity – hilariously they talk of death and they are ready to move to the next dimension without any regret.

As they say life after 70 is just a bonus that one lives, the idiom is in all truth for these happy go lucky friends as they share their rich camaraderie amongst themselves, oblivion to the people around themselves, they have carved their own world of enjoyment.

Most of their talk is about their family and more so about their past life what they have lived – They are certainly rich in experience and their talks are an ample proof of their life. Some have had government jobs and many were shopkeepers or service professionals, all are unique in their sense of talk and it is their homogeneity of situation that brings them together.

The event today is 1^st of Jan’2022, and they are happy celebrating the first day of the year with greatness of God and also with a little melancholy – two of their friends have left for heavenly abode and they miss them tremendously. They are also very cautious of the latest onslaught of Corona strain – Omicron but at the same time have the zeal to live upto their expectations of love and bonding for each other. If anyone gets absent from their daily evening stroll, a quick call is made to know about his whereabouts – it turns out to be an authentic way to gauge the depth of their friendship.

Among them some have lost their life partners, some live along as their children are abroad, others live with their families and a nagging wife 😊, as she forms the centrality of talks amongst each other.

Talk to them and they will have a common stance – they meet everyday without fail to kill time as they have been made to retire from their daily life but being able bodied they have shunned themselves to be a recluse and sitting at home. Their newfound love for technology happens to be a game changer in their life as they connect with the world of WhatsApp and facebook.

They talk in loud about their newly formed WhatsApp group and are elated to share all sorts of forward messages – terming it to be a great time killer… I happen to be sitting next to them along with my young friend but these bunch of oldies have made me tied towards their gestures and talks… may be deep inside me I am trying to explain to myself, one day your time would be spend in a similar fashion. The dusk of life for many of us would be the same, the silver lining would be the kind of company we would have at that moment. At that time the definition of success would have greatly changed…it would not be career, pelf, power but would have been hijacked by health, wellbeing, respect and peace of mind and overall a dignified living…  

~ In the Weight Of Time…~

 He has a catchy smile and greets you with his self-taught gratitude, often with a “Namaste”. Manu Uncle, what most people call him,  is an old man with a self esteem and derives life’s inspiration from the school of life itself. Blessings come from him quite often as you greet him and you suddenly a sense of a catchy feelings gushes your spine to have an elongated conversation with this old man….

He has been a visitor to the park for quite some time now and has picked a particular spot in a DDA park where he usually stands and loiters around and spends much of his time of the day. He never invites anyone to make use of the “service” he provides free of cost but with a notion that nobody would avail it for free …almost everyone pays him out of respect that he commands. He comes with a weighing machine every morning and neatly places it at a particular corner and expects people – who are jogging or having a morning health drink – to come and get to weigh themselves in lieu of anything which they want to give him. Some give him a fruit such a banana that they are having, some offer him a morning tea cuppa, many offer him a sandwiched breakfast, he never denies the goodies though and cherishes them with fervor!

He is a well-respected man as many appreciate his nature and cheerfulness, he gels well with all sorts of people, without fail at a particular time he comes on his trade-mark bicycle… cycling about 5 kms from his shanty…to spend the entire day in his “dreamland”…what he calls is jokingly….

On enquiring about his well being and pondering about his past, you will come to know that he is not alone in this world but has a son who is happily married but does not stay with him. His wife died long back and he made it a point to not be dependent on his son for a living, so be it , here he is with his daily weighing machine which earns him enough to stupefy many about his survival in such tiring circumstances.

Come winter’s and you will see him jam packed with all sort of woolen clothes which are generally donated by people who know him – though the size does not suit him in person, but the purpose is solved.

His ever-smiling nature and all salt hair gives him reverence by many, even if you wont pay him after a shameless use of his weighing machine, you will see him smiling as ever, that is the nature of this man.

Today I met him after long time, he instantaneously recognized me and asked me about my well-being. His sweet smile tells me that he is happy and living without any burden of life – On days when he doesn’t turn up, he is missed by many as he is cynosure of discussion for the sundry. Manu uncle keeps himself up-to-date about politics and what is going on this world, a rare and unique feature for a man of his age but it is his hobby to read the morning newspaper which he brings with himself everyday – he told me once that he is a graduate in Hindi and has been working as a workman in a daily newspaper – it is from there that the bug of reading bit him and turned him into a voracious reader or sorts! After retirement, his self esteem didn't allow him to sit ideally at home and be a burden to his son and soon took to his next profession...

Many such souls bring a sense of hope and talking with them touches your soul – don’t know but you feel the goodness of such beings, they are no way connected to your sphere of life or for that matter your area of interest or work but somehow you “bump” into them in life and feel like talking to them… this is what makes this life a journey to follow…

As once Shakespeare so famously said, “All the world’s a stage and all the men and women are merely players…”, the idiom holds ground when you start to observe and live in its real being…. Talk to such people out of curiosity while you shed your inhibition and shyness and you will feel that everyone in this world and society is a character of sorts fulfilling his life’s task, doing peculiar things for their living… when the director says cuts… you wont find him at the usual place you used to see him….that is what you call life…

~ The Year that was…~

As this year ends to a close, today is the time to reminisce the sweet and sour memories of time which many of us won’t be able to forget in our entire life… the test of time for all of us were tough and many of us were left in a guineapig like situation and became a mute spectator of life which quietly unfolded in front of us….day by day, minute by minute…

So how was it? many would say it was bad , indeed it was, business shut down, people loosing there source of livelihood and foremost loss of our near and dear ones…we saw it all happening in front of our eyes…we were helpless and could not have done more that we had already done. Medics preparing to safeguard life of the infected and in parallel we had scientists who were applying their mind to create a defense against this tiny enemy, but we failed miserably….

Some were born and many were lost, some smiled while others wept, we saw it all…but were helpless. The sirens of Ambulances knocking on our ears, the cries of humanity were unanswered…seconds just clicked one by one and we were forced to move on…that was the year…

So what did this onslaught tell us and what we got from all the hoopla of this enemy of humanity? Did we learn the subtle lesson what nature is trying to tell us…? The innumerable killings and the loss of value system amongst us have to result in such a calamity, it had to come and it came for us to see. The question is “ Can this be tamed by us?”, only time has the answer and none of us are clairvoyant to speculate that… we can always be positive for a good outcome but do we know when this would end – it is a tough question to crack!

As the new year unfolds and we rise in hope and aspire to follow our dreams which we had set for our lives, we can just say “ All the very best to ourselves and our near and dear ones” and thus try our best to achieve our objectives of bringing life back on our tracks….

With this hope and a sense of positivity, I beget just one question we should ask from our conscience…what was the one lesson we did learn from the past year numerical? And if we have learnt that well, have we vowed to ourselves to not repeat the same for a future course of action…. The answer remains with you… till then….  “Wishing all my readers a very Happy & Prosperous New Year….”

~ The Lonely Supper…~

 He sits on the passenger seat and has his favorite meal. His auto is parked in a dark silo under a tree and it is exactly 8 pm. I happen to pass by his auto as it is a time for me for my evening vista, probably the only time of the day when I feel the resplendence of evening fog (or may be smog) with a grilling chill.

He suddenly stopped me and asked me about the time as if he was time bound to have his dinner. I responded with the all the correctness of time to which there was a smile with a thanks. He seemed to be educated as his gestures and etiquettes is a proof of that. I didn’t want to end our meeting in such a short fluke, so insisted in asking about his whereabouts. 

He was quick to respond but wanted to have his dinner first, the time he used to have it everyday was “8 pm” and it was soon followed by a cellphone call by his newly wed wife. As I stood, I could hear the first question which popped up “ Have you had your dinner?”, my stranger was quick to respond with a shy whisper – which was an indication of him not being too comfortable in front of me…

It was a sweet gesture to which he responded with a smile towards me, I didn’t want to disturb the newly weds with their sweetness of their newfound romance. I walked away but with a sea of thoughts. It was a lonely supper but brimming with loving affection of someone who has prepared it with dedication and sweetness, the only irony being that it had to be partaken in all of its aloneness!!! The sounds of vehicles passing by had no meaning to both of them and may be they were lost in their own world of romance….

As I crossed the road and started to walk towards my destination, my inquisition pressed me to look for the last time towards the event which I had just lived and I could see the dim light of auto which he had lit up in order to have his evening supper…. Or may be it was the light of his mobile phone which was an instrument of hope and bondedness for the two souls to have their dinner together…. With these thoughts I moved on not before smiling at the scene which was a going to stay in memory for times to come…

~ Achieve Silently..Live Silently...~

 Have you ever talked with the silence of nature? And did you ever observe the mega-gifts nature is providing us everyday under the veil of silence….but we are the ones who are the noise makers…

Nature works in its own magnificent silence, you will see a sapling growing into a fruit bearing tree in no time, all in silence. The light from sun and the moon reaches us in silence, without making any noise .

Working in silos, your subconscious mind starts talking to you on varied subjects which your eye observes subtly. If you notice things are happening as you observe them ‘Not happening’ – be it your life or otherwise, tick by tick time is passing by and you observe its various dimensions.

Do one simple experiment out of your daily razzmatazz of life - Sit silently or go to some lonely place having a patch of tranquility, your brain would automatically start soothing down and would throw less encumbered thoughts to oblige, observe the thoughts which pour in, after constant practice, you will realise that you form a connect with someone inside you and suddenly you are getting towed down towards the silent sounds of this grand design....

The nature has no sound but since million of years it is existing, giving life to various flora and fauna. We came to life a specific objective and nature was our spear header – It constantly speaks to us but is silent – this sounds to be quite oxymoronic but it has a certain amount of truth. Just sit silently and observe your being, under influence of silence, your thoughts would start talking to you – who is this person who wants to give you the silent message of grand design.

Nature has achieved so much for all of us to prosper and live in harmony, still it is silent! It shows and outpours its benevolence in such a subtle manner that it does what it does but we do not see it happening

How many of us have the power and the capacity of talking in silence with our creator? Not many, but those who have does not speak much 😊 …they are good observers of nature’s happenings. All the existence is there around you but not a word speaks, people are taking birth , many are leaving us, all of our achievements, aspirations are just left behind as a matter of reverence. 

Just the other day on a casual talk someone spoke to me “ Who would die happily , a rich man or a poor man?” , after much debate and counter arguments a conclusion was made and it was  , though the question had its own answers which many would differ. 

But under weight of logic, a poor man has happy ending, coz he has nothing to loose and has no material burden he is leaving behind on the other hand a Rich man slogged although his life to acquire his riches and material wealth and when he did, his time is up and it is others who would be the real beneficiaries of his efforts…. Though sounds logical , this small discussion has a cerebral thought…and that is don’t be vociferous about your achievements at the end of the day you have to leave everything and gets single out to leave this world…. Silently you will come and silently you would go..in between is just a egoistic noise…