Smile and the world will smile back

125. On old prisoners

2012-02-19T09:51:00.000+05:30

In this week's "India Today", I read a moving article on old prisoners. Rajasthan jails have 141 convicts who are seventy plus and many of them have committed crimes like attempt to robbery. These convicts suffer from infirmities like knee problems, deafness, vision disorders and so on. They need assistance to move around. Many cannot even go to the toilet on their own. Many do not have the teeth to chew chapatis they get in jails.They cannot do their daily chores like fetching water and washing clothes. Many die of illness in jails.

The jailed geriatrics, especially women, do not have many visitors. Even if they are eligible to be released on parole, there is no one to give surety for them. The India Today article says that the jail manual does not even allow shifting of such convicts to open jails and court orders have to be obtained in individual cases to do so.

Obviously, this problem is not limited to Rajasthan jails alone. In some other States, the problem could be worse. The country-wide figure of old prisoners must be running into thousands. I wish, someone takes a close look at the problem and comes up with remedial measures.

Keeping old and infirm people in jails who pose no threat to society makes no sense to me at all. They may have committed some crime when they were able-bodied. But our criminal justice system takes so much of time before a case is decided that by the time one is convicted, one becomes totally unfit to be kept in a jail.
I was aghast to read that until June 2011, Gorakhpur jail had India's oldest prisoner who was 108. I shudder to think, someone may argue someday that the dead body of a convict needs to be punished if he/she could not be punished during his/her life time.

108.Flower's reply

2012-02-11T21:18:00.000+05:30

(please relate to poem no. 107)

Mischief of the wind!
Indifference of the branch!
Why should I imagine?
Why should I bother?
A life rather short
Why should I squander?

The branch gives me life
Until I am shed,
The wind makes me dance
Until I am dead.

It matters not to me
If I hit the dust,
Don't they bury the body
Once someone is dead?

Let the spring be unhurt,
Let new flowers bloom,
The world must not end
Once I am gone.

124. Struggling to be on Facebook

2012-01-30T21:03:00.002+05:30

I have made desperate efforts to be active on Facebook. I thought, I needed to be where the whole world was. I had to deactivate the first account I opened on Facebook, because I found myself saddled with a staggering number of 'friends'.Total strangers were sharing their personal details with me and sending me messages at an alarming speed. I hardly found anything interesting in what they were doing in their offices and homes, where and with whom they went for their vacations, in which hotel they stayed, what they ate and so on. I was sick of looking at their family photographs, their children's birthdays, marriage anniversaries, 'mundan' ceremonies, 'hawans', 'griha pravesh', their kitchen wares, dining tables, bathrooms, pets and what not.

I thought, I needed to start all over again and opened a fresh account. I was very choosy about accepting friend requests. But without my knowing, the list kept swelling and soon went beyond manageable proportions. People whose intelligence and maturity I trusted let me down. Many of them were posting the same trivia. I have now given up.

I think, people post trivia, because it does not take much application of mind. One can do it while eating, watching TV or doing anything else and have the satisfaction of having done something. For most recipients, personal details of others are welcome. People are generally happy if they can have a peep into others' private lives. I find that on Facebook, people post details and photographs they may not easily share otherwise. They say things they may not say face to face. Facebook can remove artificial layers and bring out the real self.

I don't mind peeping into the lives of those I know very well. But I am not interested in anything more than the most spicy details. Also, I have no patience to put up with any of the personal details of those in whose lives I am not at all interested.

14.From Gurudwara Data Bandi Chhod, Gwalior Fort

2012-01-26T16:10:00.000+05:30

107.The flower

2012-01-14T16:11:00.000+05:30

Flower, what makes you dance?

The branch that carries you
Has no love for you,
The wind that caresses you
Is just conspiring...

The hope you nurse is false,
The bond you feel is illusion,
An object of play you are
A source of some quick fun.

Shed quietly by the branch,
You are destined to fall
And bite the dust soon,
Ignored, forgotten,trampled...

New flowers will bloom
Bringing new play, new fun,
The spring will remain unhurt,
No one will miss you.

106.Real new year

2012-01-08T16:50:00.001+05:30

New year is fast getting old,
Flow of greetings has ebbed,
Inbox is no more flooded with messages,
Incoming calls are not as frequent.

Coloured envelops are fast vanishing,
Mail boxes no more choked,
Lavish parties are done with and gone,
Strangers have quit in haste.

One week has slipped away
In soulless, senseless glitter,
Time for some thought and action now,
This must be a real new year.

105.To 2011

2011-12-31T15:26:00.007+05:30

On your last day, old year,
Let us spend some time together.

There were cold, dull days
When the sun felt helpless,
When hope deserted me,
Sweet dreams shunned my sleep,
Failure was the result of all effort
And light at the end of tunnel mere illusion.

There were days full of light too,
Although few and far between,
When life seemed worth living,
When action was driven by hope,
When happiness appeared within reach.

For the sake of such stray days,
Let us spend some time together,
Without grudge, rancour or ill-will
I bid you farewell,old year.

104.Old year

2011-12-25T15:46:00.002+05:30

Don't leave with guilt, old year.

My woes were not your making,
My failures not your fault,
My slip-ups were mine only,
My ill-luck was my own creation.

You gave me days with sunshine,
But I chose to embrace darkness;
You gave me nights to relax,
But I opted to lose my slumber.

What you offered I squandered,
With sloth I greeted you forever,
You can keep your head high,
I must hide my face, old year.

103.Living in past

2011-12-18T19:52:00.002+05:30

The winter is long
Won't be over soon,
No spring to follow,
No respite in sight.

No tender leaves to touch,
No roses to bloom,
No fragrance to breathe,
Stems carry only thorns.

Feelings have vanished,
Embers long died down,
Only rancour remains,
Only stink prevails.

Gone is the warmth of hug,
Gone is the desire to touch,
Smile on lips has faded,
The tongue has gone silent.

Memories are still alive
Of days filled with care,
Of nights soaked in love,
Of conversations seeped in honey.

Why should we live in the moment,
Why should we continue to suffer?
Let us live in the past,
The present is dead and over.

123. In memory of Bhupen da

2011-12-10T11:36:00.000+05:30

I should have written this post some time back when Bhupen Hazarika passed away. But it is not too late to pay tributes to a genius who had magical effect over people. I have been a lucky witness to Bhupen Hazarika's charm and his enviable fan-following.

I don't remember when I first saw Bhupen da. My first remembrance of him goes back 40-45 years back. In my small hometown of Assam, a concert was organised where thousands waited for him to sing. For some reason, he was late by several hours, but no one left the venue and no one complained. When he finally arrived at the stage, people went mad. He sang a large number of songs one after another, fully compensating people for the long wait. His energy level was amazing.

Since then, I attended several of his concerts in my hometown. I remember a particular occasion when thousands braved very heavy rain to listen to him. Despite request from organisers, people refused to leave and insisted on listening to Hazarika. He did not disappoint his admirers.

At another concert, there was a mike failure, but people insisted that Bhupen da must sing. It did not matter to them whether they could listen to him. His mere presence at the stage and his lip movements were enough for people.

It is difficult for people outside Assam to imagine how popular he was. I have not seen anyone with this kind of fan following. But Bhupen da was not influenced by all this. Till his end, he remained a simple person. He was so much admired, perhaps because he wrote about common people, their problems and contemporary issues. Many of the songs he wrote were much ahead of his time. Gulzar has beautifully translated in Hindi some of his most popular songs. The songs have been recorded in Bhupen da's own golden voice.

I doubt if Assam has seen a more popular person than Bhupen Hazarika. When I close my eyes, I can see thousands of people cheering him and urging him to sing their favourite songs which were too many to be accommodated in a single concert.

102.Change

2011-12-06T10:01:00.003+05:30

What I was the day before
I was not yesterday,
What I was yesterday
I was not this morning,
What I was this morning
I am no longer now,
To what I was years back
I am a total stranger today.

Something keeps working on me,
Adding this, chipping that off,
For better or for worse,
I just can't stick to myself.

122. On giving up

2011-11-26T19:50:00.001+05:30

The more our wants are, the more restless we are. The more we possess, the more we want to possess. So, it makes sense to simplify our lives by giving up that which we do not really need. This may open up the path to peace and happiness. But this is easier said than done.

A few months back, I read in newspapers about a movement which called upon people to manage with just 100 things. We have spread our desires so much that thousands of things appear essential to us. 100 is not a small number, but once we start weeding out things that we do not really need, we find it next to impossible to bring down the list to 100.

Inspired by the newspaper report, I started thinking of the things I could do without. I decided that my wrist-watch was the only thing I could give up. Since we could see the time in our mobile phones, it appeared to me that wearing a watch really did not make any sense.

For a few months, I managed without a watch, but all the time, I missed it. Instinctively, my eyes would go to my wrist and not to my mobile phone to find out what the time was. Invariably, I would return to myself disappointed.

I struggled with myself for all these months and kept my watch at bay, but I finally gave in today. My watch is back on my wrist and I am feeling much more comfortable now.

Habits die hard. Giving up is very good in principle, but habits come in the way of giving up. It is not easy for lesser mortals to fight their habits and win.

101.The child’s smile

2011-11-20T09:58:00.003+05:30

When rivers go dry,
Mountains go bald,
Trees go naked,
Skies turn black.

When eyes stop shining,
Heart stops smiling,
Mind goes blank,
Legs become rigid.

When wind starts biting,
Sand starts burning,
Walls come closer,
Roof starts crumbling.

When all roads are closed,
All windows are shut,
When all hopes are dashed,
Watch a child smiling.

(Written on this year’s Children’s Day)

13. On the Mall in Manali

2011-11-13T09:20:00.000+05:30

121.Violence against domestic servants

2011-11-07T09:22:00.001+05:30

Everyday in newspapers, we read tales of cruelty against domestic servants. Young boys and girls are subjected to endless drudgery, beaten up and abused in other ways. If they give in to small temptations of childhood, they are branded thieves. If the children of their masters complain against them, swift and instant ‘justice’ is meted out without any opportunity of hearing. They are locked up without food and water. When they sometimes suffer grievous injuries due to torture, they are not given proper medical treatment for the fear that their masters will be exposed.

Such children have no where to go. Their parents depend on the money they earn and can easily turn a blind eye to their plight. It is only when media or alert neighbours come to know about them that they can hope for rescue. But how many of them can be so fortunate?

If this is the situation in metropolitan cities like Delhi, what will be the situation in smaller places where media presence is limited and domestic servants are more easily available?

A strong law and effective implementation is required to protect these children, give them the opportunity of education and restore their childhood to them. The society needs to be sensitised about their plight. NGOs can play an important role in this task. But the most important factor, perhaps, is to find a solution to the economic issues that lead to such disasters in the first place.

We call ourselves human beings, but for small comforts, we can forget all humanity and display the most barbaric behaviour. This streak in human beings is most difficult to explain.

120.On World Thrift Day

2011-10-30T13:25:00.001+05:30

Yet another day is being observed today- the World Thrift Day which focuses on the need to inculcate the habit of thrift for the development of the individual and the nation. Who can deny the value of capital formation which is not possible without savings ?

I am only worried about the thin border-line between thrift and miserliness. The use of money is in spending, but there are people who shudder at the thought of spending. They will greedily watch others enjoying, but hold every penny tight between their teeth. They will starve and deny themselves the simple and well-deserved pleasures of life in the name of thrift. They may occasionally philosophise and comfort themselves by arguing that happiness has nothing to do with money.

Such people are more of a nuisance to their families which may be totally dependent on them for financial support. Their children may have to become the butt of jokes before their friends and their wives may be cursing themselves for choosing the life partners they did.

I think, misers become misers out of habit. Initially, they may have some lofty idea like saving money for securing their own future and that of their families. But gradually, it becomes a habit. Even if they have plenty, they just can’t spend. They enjoy not spending, just as others enjoy spending. They choose not to spend without any idea of the objective for which they are doing so.

This is not to say that one should spend recklessly. The bottom-line is that one must learn to live within one’s means and also save a reasonable amount to secure their own future and that of their families.

I would rather like to be a miser than be perpetually in debt.

119. On Deepawali

2011-10-23T15:20:00.001+05:30

The festival of lights is just a couple of days away. The weather in Delhi has turned better. The days are not as hot as they used to be just a few days back. The mornings and evenings are quite pleasant- neither hot nor cold. When the weather is good, the mood also turns good. How correct was the famous English writer who said, “Nothing clears up my spirits like a fine day.” Our spirits are high and we are all set to welcome Deepawali.

Markets are decorated. People are busy shopping. Gifts are feverishly being exchanged. Houses are shorn of dirt and junk. Glowing lights outside homes have suddenly brought streets alive.

Traffic jams,deafening fire-crackers,expensive gifts and adulterated sweets are some spoilers of the festive mood. Nothing much can be done about traffic jams and fire-crackers are falling more and more silent year after year. However, gifts seem to have become an instrument to show off or serve as veiled bribe. Feelings and sentiments appear to be missing. Gifts are being given by the most reluctant people under compulsion. Adulterated sweets, especially made of milk and milk products, are on the rise.Chemicals, acids and other unheard of things are going into the making of sweets.This may be one of the reasons why chocolates are fast catching up with sweets.

Despite these depressing aspects, Deepawali remains one of the most beautiful festivals.This Deepawali, let us try and light lamps in as many lives as possible. Let us do something for the poor and the deprived, hug some estranged friend, spare some time for old parents, bring a smile on the lips of a child…If we make their Deepawali, our Deepawali will automatically be made.

118.On Handwashing Day

2011-10-15T12:58:00.003+05:30

Everyday in newspapers, I read about different types of days – mother’s day, father’s day, son’s day, daughter’s day, wife’s day, valentine’s day….It is too much to expect people to remember other days when they find it difficult to remember birthdays and wedding anniversaries. Valentine’s day seems to be the only exception. Those keen on observing this day as well as those who think that observing the valentine's day is an unpardonable crime seem to be preparing for the day well in advance. About less significant days, media has to remind us. Our lives would have been much easier if there had been a single birth day and wedding day in a year for everyone. Newspapers would have simply reminded us and we would have been relieved of the burden of remembering the birth days and wedding days of an unmanageable number of people.

Are you aware that the world is observing the handwashing day today? I was not, because I hardly saw anyone washing hands today, but thanks to newspapers, my awareness level is now better. It is really sad that we don’t make it a point to wash hands before cooking, serving or eating food and after doing activities that encourage germs and bacteria to touch and cling to our hands. In the process, we become free distributors of these organisms, sharing them with totally innocent and reluctant people. If we take a little care, we may avoid diseases like diarrhoea to a large extent.

Many people would argue, where is the time to wash hands so many times during the day? An easy solution to this is eating less number of times. That will also put a check on trips to the toilet, reducing the number of times we would be required to wash our hands. I am not sure if this is a practical solution.

I wonder, why we Indians are lagging behind in this important area of personal hygiene. Are we not in the habit of washing our hands off everything? I don’t understand this duality.

100.Unreal

2011-10-09T14:34:00.001+05:30

Bright sunshine is spread all around,

Cool breeze is blowing,

Flowers are in full bloom,

Rivers move in gentle flow.

Animals dance with abandon,

Birds sing full throttle,

Every face wears a smile,

Every heart with joy overflows.

Not a trace of sickness,

Not a sign of distress,

No threat of darkness descending,

No signal of storm brewing.

Let some thorns grow,

Let someone cry out deep,

This calmness is too unreal,

This is too much to digest.

99.The Coin

2011-10-01T11:18:00.001+05:30

A rupee coin started rolling

From power corridors in Delhi

To my humble thatched hut

On the edge of a forlorn forest.

Hurtling on rough surfaces,

Passing through soiled hands,

Crossing hurdles and barriers,

The coin finally discovered me.

It was much smaller now,

Too small to secure in palm,

Too small to secure at all,

Too tiny to tackle my woes.

Give me just what you can,

But I want it full and fair,

Why should anyone try and nibble

At what is only mine to eat?

(already published in Chill Maadi, an e-magazine published from Manipal)

98.Next letter

2011-09-22T11:46:00.001+05:30

Son, your letter never ceases to bring
New energy, new joy, new life to me.

Your tales of success -
Mansions you have built,
Bids you have won,
Money you could earn -
All makes me so proud.

Yet, something seems missing,
Some questions seek answers,
A lingering feeling prevails
That the tidings are not complete.

When you write next, my son,
Don't forget to give an account
Of bonds you have built,
Hearts you could win
And humans you have earned.

My blog of Hindi poems

2011-09-14T15:03:00.001+05:30

For my Hindi poems, you may like to visit my blog http://onkarkedia.blogspot.com/ a link for which also appears on the right top corner of this blog with the caption "Kavitayen".

117.On Delhi blast

2011-09-11T09:42:00.001+05:30

Yet another blast this week. 13 lives snuffed out. What was their fault ? The killer did not know whom he was going to kill. The killed did not know why they were killed. Even the worst criminal faces trial and is told why death sentence is being passed against him. But in this case, there was no allegation, no trial, no opportunity. The killed did not know why they were killed. They did not even know, they were going to be killed.

Many of the survivors may be in a worse position. They may have lost their vital limbs. Some may have to live the rest of their lives without their close ones. How long will this madness continue ?

Someone has succeeded in ideologically brainwashing the killers. They have been convinced of some real or imaginary injustice and led to believe that the cause will prosper if they kill innocent people. How could this absurd conviction be achieved? And why did the society and its institutions, with all the resources at their command, fail to convince the same set of people to think otherwise?

I feel, the society has not paid sufficient attention to this relatively new form of danger that it faces. While there is a lot of talk about what the Government should do, how the security agencies should be prepared, where CCTV cameras should be installed, how intelligence should be collected and so on, there is hardly any stress on how we must prevent our young people from going astray and how our people should be prepared to defend themselves against such attacks.

In schools, we learn literature, science, mathematics, social studies, history, geography and what not. Much of what is taught has no relevance to our physical and emotional well-being. A child spends decades in schools and colleges and comes out totally clueless about how to defend himself against terror attacks and natural disasters, and how to prevent himself from being swayed by something which to me appears totally stupid and absurd.

97.Trust

2011-09-03T19:33:00.001+05:30

Child, break all you want -

Your precious toys,

Shining glass-wares,

Windowpanes of neighbours,

Anything else…

All can be repaired,

Loss can be made up,

Damage can be undone.

But child, don’t break trust,

It takes time to build,

Nurture it, preserve it, value it,

For once broken,

It is not easy to fix.

96.Online meeting

2011-08-27T20:33:00.002+05:30

Son, come online tonight,
I will show you my wound
That refuses to heal
And does not let me sleep.

Put some balm on it
Of soft words and gestures,
The wound will not heal,
But may get flashes of relief.

I will also show you tears
Of your ageing mother
(Hope, you remember her)
Some caused by pain of body,
Some by a mother’s heart.

How will you wipe them, my son?
Empty words and gestures,
That is what you can give,
What else is possible online?

116. On Anna Hazare’s agitation

2011-08-20T17:26:00.003+05:30

The current wave of public support for Anna Hazare has baffled many. The rapidity with which it has grown, the way it has sustained itself and the way it has reached even small towns and villages- everything is amazing. Once things settle down, it will be a good case study. Thanks God, it has remained non-violent so far despite its mass base and geographical expanse. One hopes, it will remain so in the days to come.
It will be a mistake to see the movement only in the narrow context of Lok Pal Bill. I doubt if people really understand the differences between the Government’s Bill and the so-called Jan Lok Pal Bill. Do people really care if the Prime Minister and the judiciary are in the ambit of Lok Pal ? These are issues which bother intellectuals who feel, they are doing a great patriotic duty by articulating their views on what is beyond the comprehension of the common man.
I feel, this is the pent-up anger among people against corruption which has led to the current agitation. People are sick of the hardships they face at every step in their life due to corruption. Passport, driving licence, ration card – nothing comes easy. Money meant for people does not reach them. Projects meant for their welfare do not take shape on the ground.
Maybe, things have improved a lot in recent years due to RTI, computerisation, etc. I remember the time when it was next to impossible to get accommodation in trains without paying money. Today, you can get your berth reserved from home thanks to computerisation. Similar improvements have taken place in some other areas as well. But people are more aware today. The awareness has made them much more intolerant of corruption. There are many more avenues today for this intolerance to find expression.
In Anna Hazare, people see someone who can lead their fight against corruption. He is seen as someone who is selfless and has no axe to grind. His credibility is his biggest asset. People are not going to be satisfied with the enactment of a strong Lokpal Bill. They will be restless until corruption is removed from their day-to-day life.

115. Camera and holidays

2011-08-13T21:13:00.001+05:30

Camera is a fantastic thing. It has infused a lot of life into our holidays. Now-a-days, one does not have to worry about cumbersome reels which required to be washed and developed. One does not have to keep count of the snaps one has taken. Just go on happily clicking and see the results instantaneously. If you do not like the first one, take another one and yet another until you are satisfied. On top of it, prices of digital cameras are falling with each passing day. Anybody can afford one these days.

Go to any tourist spot. You will find people busy taking pictures. Camera has given people something to look forward to. Now, people know what they are going to do when they visit some tourist spot. With their camera around, they are sure to remain pretty busy.

Those who have no fascination for nature find taking pictures of nature exciting. Those who find their spouses most unattractive find their pictures worth taking. Spouses who hate to look at each other smile when confronted by a camera. No one wants the ugly face of reality to be recorded. Families which are pulling in different directions come together for the sake of camera.

I shudder to think what would happen to our holidays if there were no camera. Many people would be bored to death. They will carry their fights to tourist places and will come back as unrefreshed as ever.Camera has great sobering effect. It succeeds in doing what friends and well-wishers may fail to do.

95. Dealing with darkness

2011-08-05T18:37:00.003+05:30

Darkness trickles into night
As from the roof of a cottage
Water falls in a bucket
Drop by drop….

Every grain,every pore is wet
With constant tears of the sky

Which weeps like a crazy mother

Whose lone child has passed away.

Every moment of night
Seems to have spread its wings
Into a number of years
And the sun still looks far away.

Let some strength come from within,

Let some light be searched around,

Darkness has to be challenged

Until the sun arrives….

12.More from Manali

2011-07-30T12:38:00.000+05:30

114.Happier on weekends

2011-07-24T15:18:00.001+05:30

Newspapers recently published a study by two economists from the University of British Columbia which confirmed the age-old perception that people are happier on weekends and holidays than on weekdays.John F. Helliwell and Shun Wang found that Americans enjoyed more, laughed more, worried less and got less angry on weekends. One reason for this was that people got more time to spend with family and friends on weekends. Interestingly, the study found that men were happier than women on weekends.

I am sure, the results of the study will be universally true. In fact, the effect of weekends is so obvious that no study is required to confirm it. Who will not like to get away from the drudgery of work? Who will not like to come out of the monotony of routine - day after day from Monday to Friday? Who is not tired of looking at the face of a boss who behaves as if the weight of the whole world is on him or her?

I am not surprised that men are happier than women on weekends. This would be specially true for India. Husbands look forward to weekends to watch tons of TV and gulp dish after dish. Whatever spare time they have, they spend in sleeping. Poor wives keep working in the kitchen the whole of weekends and helplessly watch their husbands ceaselessly eating, watching TV and littering the house. On weekends, their husbands hardly have any time for them. On top of it, they have neither the time nor the opportunity to watch their favourite serials.

For working women, weekends are likely to be much more taxing than for housewives. They may be working much more than they do on weekdays.

I am sure, the wives would be eagerly waiting for Mondays to arrive. There are no Monday blues for them.

11.From around Manali last week

2011-07-20T21:33:00.000+05:30

94.Logic versus emotions

2011-07-12T11:23:00.001+05:30

Desperate to preserve our turfs,

We pull the string in opposite ways,

I in favour of tradition, you against.

My morality fails to convince,

Your defiance seems suicidal,

My decision you cannot accept,

Your wish I cannot grant.

I feel helpless as the gulf widens,

The drift is so silent yet so fast,

The future is far from promising,

The bond seems ready to snap.

Let us leave logic aside,

Let emotions prevail and decide,

Let us each concede a bit

Let us walk side by side,

If not together….

113. Scientific confusion

2011-07-04T10:09:00.000+05:30

Newspapers recently carried a research report which said that in the rainy season, it is good to eat fried stuff. Things that are deep fried will most likely be free of contamination. Luckily, this is rainy season and we can immediately get down to eating pakoras, samosas and other fried delicacies scientists have long deprived us of. I wish, the scientists had come to this welcome conclusion a little earlier.

For decades, I have helplessly watched eatables that I always longed to eat. I was always stopped in my tracks by medical experts who were always eager to tender their unsolicited advice. They had to scare me with all kinds of threats- that if I eat fried stuff, I will develop acidity, ulcer, hypertension and what not. Now that I have already lost precious time, they have casually revised their advice. Don't they owe an explanation for the years I have lost ?

Similar is the case with tea. For many years, they kept saying that tea is as dangerous as poison. As children, we greedily watched our elders happily sipping cup after cup of tea. But we were forced to drink tasteless, colourless milk, as tea was not supposed to be good for our health. Milk had all the vitamins- A to Z, protein and numorous other nutrients. The only thing it was lacking was taste which was the only thing tea could boast of.

Some years back, scientists decided to have mercy on us. They cheerfully announced that they had all along been wrong. Tea in fact had medicinal properties. No one had any feeling of remorse about the lost cups of tea.

As I am rapidly proceeding towards my old age, I shudder to think what researchers may come up with. When I would have lost all my teeth, these guys are capable of saying that semi-solid stuff is dangerous for my heath and that I must eat solids to be able to live long. I will not find it easy to eat solids without teeth, but who cares?

93.Son in the album

2011-06-26T15:57:00.001+05:30

It has been quite some time,

Let us meet him today.

Take out old albums

Dust them thoroughly,

Put your glasses on

Seek him out in photos.

Revisit the happy moments

When he rode on my back,

When he tugged at your dress

When he held a trophy high.

Look at his pictures in your lap

Or on shoulders that did not ache

See him crying when he lost his toy

And quickly smiling on getting it back.

He is no longer a child,

Things are no longer the same,

He neither smiles nor cries,

He neither talks nor hugs.

Let us visit him again

In the yellowish,dusty photos,

See him,hug him, talk to him,

He is much the same in the album.

10.Miniatures from Cockington Garden, Canberra

2011-06-22T13:13:00.000+05:30

112.About 100% cut-off

2011-06-17T15:42:00.003+05:30

A Delhi-based college recently surprised all by setting 100% cut-off for non-Commerce students for admission to their B.Com.(Honours) course. This was enough to send the current as well as would-be aspirants into a tizzy. I saw interesting comments by youngsters on Facebook and Twitter. Many of the comments I failed to understand, not because these were not correctly written, but because youngsters have a lingo that I sometimes find beyond myself.

The problem with 100% cut-off is that it is not possible to get more than 100% marks. Many youngsters would now be working hard to resolve the problem and I am hopeful, they will find a way to take the maximum possible percentage beyond 100.

Part of the blame also lies with examiners who are growing in kindness year after year. When I was a student, examiners used to be the most miserly section of the society. They were always on the look-out for some fault in the best of the answers. They treated marks as their private capital and wanted to give away as little as possible. They felt miserable if someone could snatch 60% from them. They felt robbed. Teachers now-a-days are very different. They first give 100% and then see if the student has committed some crime in the answer-script to warrant any reduction.

Partly, the problem can be solved if some more chairs can be placed in class-rooms of prestigious colleges. Bright students may be required to sit in slightly cramped chairs. But I am sure, they will willingly make the sacrifice in favour of their less bright brethren.

I can understand the frustration of those who have scored less than 100%. They now know that there was nothing to celebrate about 98-99% . I am happy, I am no longer a student.

92.Agony of non-expression

2011-06-05T16:07:00.003+05:30

How long will I suffer
The agony of non-expression?

Bottled up feelings
Struggle to come out,
But the tongue refuses
For fear of rejection.

Trembling lips you can’t read,
Plea of eyes you can’t see,
Ignorant of my love unsaid,
You seem as happy as ever.

I can’t speak,
You don’t know,
What do I do ?

111. On running backwards

2011-05-28T17:02:00.002+05:30

A widely reported study recently stated that running backwards is more beneficial to health than running forwards. It protects the joints, improves cardio-vascular fitness and burns more calories. 100 steps backwards have the same benefits as 1000 steps forwards. Running backwards also improves co-ordination.
I am tempted to start walking backwards when I visit my neighbourhood park tomorrow morning. I am not sure, if that would be easy. A major problem is that I don’t have eyes at the back. So, there is a chance of my causing injury to myself or to others. If I bump into ladies, I may never be able to walk again- either forwards or backwards.
I may be able to make up for the handicap if I turn my head to either side and bring my eyes to a position where they are able to see backwards.But the success can at best be partial. I also run the risk of offsetting health benefits from running backwards with a neck injury. If my head could move 360 degrees, I could have managed to walk backwards comfortably without an additional pair of eyes at the back. May be, even one eye in front and one eye at the back would have helped. But these are engineering issues beyond my control.
I am sure, my walking backwards will provide free entertainment to many morning walkers. Those who are unaware of the research may think that I am not mentally sound. Others may think that there are some people who don’t mind making caricatures of themselves if they can be assured of some health benefit from some weird activity. But all onlookers will find the sight laughable and they will surely derive health benefits from my walking backwards.
All my life, I followed the advice that I must always move forwards. That hardly helped me. Moving backwards may actually take me forwards. This is the only silver lining that I can see in following the new advice.

91.Old man’s nightmare

2011-05-21T16:42:00.001+05:30

My son, I saw a dream last night,

Terrible, unbelievable,numbing…

A heartless monster kept coming

With new forms of abuse,

New instruments of torture,

New methods of humiliation.

First, he hit me with abandon,

Then, he snatched my belongings,

Next, he threw me out of house

And finally, returned to stab me.

With fear gripping me hard

And venom covering his face,

He was not easy to recognise,

But will you believe this, my son,

He looked very much like you.

110. Resurgence of woman power

2011-05-14T10:16:00.001+05:30

Since yesterday, newspapers and TV channels in India have been overflowing with the news of election results in four States and one Union Territory. It is not the political aspect of the results which attracts my attention. For me, the results reflect resounding reiteration of woman power. In the two of the major States of the country- West Bengal and Tamil Nadu- women are set to be Chief Ministers. Also, Mamata Banerjee and Jayalalitha are no compromise candidates, thrown up by politics of compulsion. They hold dominating positions in their respective parties- Trinamool Congress and AIADMK. In fact, their positions have been so dominant that many would find it difficult to recall the name of any other leader from these two parties. If their parties have won, the entire credit goes to them and in the event of loss, the entire blame would have gone to them.

People of these two States have trusted women with responsibility. I wish the same respect and recognition had percolated down to reach the women down the ladder. Women in families and offices still feel discriminated against. They do not have the same opportunities as men. Their safety is an issue even in big cities. In many cases, their views are not solicited even in decisions pertaining to them. Often, they are victims of domestic violence. Respect is a far cry to them.

This divide needs to be bridged quickly. A lot of time has already been lost. What is happening in politics needs to be emulated in other spheres of life.

90.Quiet old man

2011-05-07T16:38:00.001+05:30

Old man sits quiet in a corner,
His heart flush with emotions,
His mind brimming with thoughts,
His wealth of experience oozing out...

His tongue remains vocal,
His faculties sharp as ever,
His time is not at premium,
His desire to share is intact.

All set and raring to go,
Old man just awaits a pair of ears.

9.More pictures from Australia

2011-05-05T12:10:00.000+05:30

8.More birds from Australia

2011-04-11T10:51:00.000+05:30

89.Old woman's concern

2011-04-06T09:55:00.000+05:30

How can I die
Leaving him alone
To face ignominy ?

Who will comfort him
When his wishes are crushed
By the ones he loved ?

Who will keep alive
His faith in himself
When rejected by his own ?

Who will hug him
When he feels helpless,
Defenceless and vulnerable ?

Who will give him shoulder
When his pent up misery
Flows out as tears ?

No, I can't be selfish,
He has to die
Before I can leave.

7. Birds from Canberra, Australia

2011-04-05T09:59:00.001+05:30

109. About a university

2011-03-28T10:30:00.004+05:30

In Canberra, I am staying in the campus of the Australian National University which seems to have all the ingredients for good learning. The campus is very green, very spacious and partly surrounded by a beautiful lake. When I go for my morning walk, I see scores of young, happy students cycling past me. There are students from all around the world and they seem to be getting along very well. Last Saturday, there was a cultural function on the occasion of the Earth Day where students and teachers from diverse cultures sang, danced and dined together. There is no law and order problem in the university. One can move about without fear at any time of day or night. Eve-teasing is something unheard of. Different departments are located in houses which look like residential houses and this gives the university a distict character. What impressed me most was the comment from some of my acquaintances here that the University encourages critical and creative thinking. In our country, emphasis is on mugging and the calibre of a student is judged by how accurately and how much he can reproduce in the examinations. There is no emphasis on developing the independent mind of the student. Any critical and creative comment is promptly dismissed as incorrect- unworthy of any further scruity. It is high time we start putting premium on critical and creative thinking. Mugging must be discouraged. Then only, we will have people who could take right decisions. We must attract the best talent to our educational institutions and the performance of those in whose hands we put the future of our nation must be continuously and properly assessed. This is something too important to be ignored.

108. A different world

2011-03-23T11:01:00.005+05:30

I am currently on a visit to Australia. The experience of being here is so different. I have seen a little bit of Sydney and Canberra. There are very few high-rise buildings. Most houses are single-storeyed. There is plentry of land and very small population. You will not see big markets like we do in Delhi. Window-shopping hardly has any scope here. It is so strange to walk in streets without rubbing your shoulders with others. Sometimes, you feel scary. If you lose your way, you may not find anyone to guide you. Shops here close very early - by 6 pm or 7 pm. People seem to be very particular about protecting their private time and private space.
Cricket has not caught much attention so far. Channels are hardly talking about the World Cup. Maybe, the interest will grow as the tournament progresses and Australia puts up a good show.
I hear a lot of chirping of birds all through the day. That is the sound I miss in Delhi. Hares hop around in the bushes- something unimaginable at most places in India.
Once I get back, I will try to post some pictures on the blog which perhaps will show what our giant population has deprived us of.

88.Old man's dilemma

2011-03-15T16:57:00.010+05:30

Old man cannot get up early,

Others need to sleep,

He cannot get up late,

Toilets need to be free.

Old man cannot eat at the table,

He knows no manners,

He cannot eat on the floor,

The place is for servants.

Old man cannot open mouth,

He knows no English,

He cannot keep mum,

He is not a thing.

Old man cannot sneeze,

Old man cannot cough,

Neither can he snore,

Nor can he breathe.

Old man does this,
Old man does that,
Old man is in a fix,
What to do with himself ?

107. Thought on Women's Day

2011-03-08T09:43:00.002+05:30

On International Women's Day, newspapers have carried write-ups about the progress made by women. It is heartening to see that they are now occupying top positions in hitherto male-dominated fields like police, trade and business, bureaucracy and aviation. Naturally, other women will be inspired by these examples. But I was a bit disappointed to see that there was hardly any write-up about the condition of common women. What kind of opportunities are they getting to study, work and manage their own affairs and those of their families? How secure do they feel? Do they continue to be victims of domestic violence?

My own feeling is that the condition of common women has changed, but not fast enough. There are laws to help them, but their enfoceability is an issue. Even in big cities, women do not feel safe. Safety is the first condition for other things to follow. Only if they feel safe, they can take full advantage of the opportunities to study, take up jobs and manage their own affairs. Only then, their self-confidence will grow.

One big change that seems to have taken place is regarding dowry. This was a big problem only a few years back. Newspapers used to be full of accounts of dowry demands and dowry deaths, but not any more. It seems that the prevailing sex ratio has contributed to this more than any change in social attitudes. This is why a similar change is not visible in other areas.

I was disappointed to see that TV channels hardly paid any attention to International Women's Day.They had bigger issues to handle- like World Cup of Cricket, politics, cinema and Varun Gandhi's marriage.

87.Old man in the city

2011-02-28T15:13:00.004+05:30

Old man in the city
Watches mesmerised
Vehicles of varied sizes and colours
Zipping past in unrelenting flow
On wide smooth road
Climbing up and down giant flyovers...

Hours move quickly,
Darkness spreads around,
Lights start glowing on the road
To keep motorists safe
And their speed unbridled.

Old man is now worried,
He is not sure any more,
Will this flow ever end ?
Can he ever cross over?
Will he ever reach home?

86.To VIP

2011-02-20T17:51:00.001+05:30

Why are you in a baffling hurry,

What calling beckons you,

What great have you achieved,

What lives have you touched ?

Sit quiet for a moment,

Move within and ask,

Seek answer to the simple question,

“What right do I have ?”

Is it power, is it position,

Or is it respect earned ?

Is the distance caused by need

Or is it vanity on display ?

Don’t clear roads of us,

Join us where we are,

Be with us, march with us,

Your passage will remain ever smooth.

106. Valentine’s Day

2011-02-14T11:38:00.002+05:30

Valentine's Day is being observed today. I cannot think of any other day which has seen such a meteoric rise. While couples in love have existed since time immemorial, Valentine's Day is of recent origin. A few years back,'Valentine's Day' would have sounded as foreign to our couples as Greek and Roman, but not any more. Today, if any of the partners is unaware of the day and does not show enough care to observe it, the future of their love life may be at stake.

I have seen hundreds of advertisements in newspapers in run-up to the Valentine's Day. There are attractive discounts on mobiles,laptops,CD players,flowers...almost anything that will qualify as decent gifts between couples. Restaurants are overbooked. People have taken leave from their offices to celebrate the day. Such preparations are rarely seen during Holi, Deewali and other unglamourous festivals.

For trouble-makers also,Valentine's Day is a rare opportunity. They have been preparing themselves with the necessary arms and ammuntion to take on the ever-growing army of Valentine's Day couples. They are carefully selecting their targets- restaurants, parks, malls, etc. Clearly, they are fast losing the battle. Administration, however, is not taking any chances. They have to uphold love at all costs. Security forces have been deployed in strength to provide a hassle-free Valentine's Day to couples.

I have not seen so much enthusiasm for the Father's Day, the Mother's Day and the Raksha Bandhan which celebrates the love between the brother and the sister. I don't know if there are days dedicated to other relations like grandparents,sons and daughters.

Will it be a good idea to celebrate the Valentine's Day simply as the day of love - between lovers, spouses,parents and children, grandparents and grandchildren...? The only problem is that on the Valentine's Day, children may be too busy to find time for their parents and grandparents for obvious reasons.

85.VIP movement

2011-02-05T09:44:00.005+05:30

His cavalcade is coming,
Quickly move away,
Clear the way forthwith,
Stay huddled in a corner,
Shut your mouth,
Hold your breath...

Better stay in homes,
Shut the door tight,
Don't let children laugh,
Don't let babies cry,
Hold pets on leash,
Don't let birds fly.

Don't catch flight,
Don't fall sick,
Don't be born,
Don't die.

Don't be indiscreet,
Put off everything,
His life is precious,
His time is not for wasting,
His passage must be smooth,
Nothing else matters.

84. Wish of a leader

2011-01-29T16:11:00.002+05:30

Let me enjoy some moments

Of dignity and solitude

After I breathe my last

Till I retain my body.

Don’t put me on display

With cameras clicking,

Lights flashing,

Strangers faking grief,

Onlookers relishing…

Don’t wrap me in tricolour,

That is meant for hoisting,

Let me be in simple white,

Clean,smooth,unmixed.

Don’t fire noisy guns,

Spreading their smoke around,

No heap of garlands for me,

No public holiday and mourning.

Leave my body alone

With the ones I love,

My time with them is short

I can share it with none.

105.Reading habits of children

2011-01-22T18:50:00.003+05:30

Most parents crib about the reading habits of their children. They are worried that their children spend all their free time on watching TV,surfing the net or playing video games. They would like their children to do some reading, but the children just would not listen.

Who is responsible for this state of affairs? Did we introduce our children to the pleasure of reading from the very beginning? We provided them easy access to TV, internet and video games. Whatever reading they did was for securing good grades in schools. This was reading out of compulsion and not out of choice. We were happy if they devoted all their time to this type of reading and did not bother if the rest of the time was spent on the activities to which they gradually got addicted. We never provided them general books that would encourage them to read during their spare time.

We also did not set an example to children. We ourselves hardly did any reading. All our spare time was consumed by TV viewing and internet surfing. We forgot that our children were watching and emulating us.

Maybe, it is not too late. The situation may be changed if we start reading some really entertaining books. Maybe, children will see the books lying around day after day and someday, they will pick up one of the books. That moment may be the turning point of their life.

104.Reading habits

2011-01-17T13:18:00.003+05:30

Many newspapers this month have carried names of last year's favourite books of eminent persons. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that many busy persons including the Prime Minister found time to read a large number of books. Some claimed to have read up to 30 books during the year. I was ashamed of the fact that I could read only 2-3. I know friends who did not read any.

I feel, lack of time is only an alibi for not reading books. If one is keen to read books, one can find time amidst all the pre-occupations. One can be faithful to the work one is paid for and still read books. No compromise is required at all.

The fact is that many of us are unknown to the pleasure of reading books. Watching TV, surfing internet, reading newspapers or just whiling away time are the activities that appear to be much more entertaining. I doubt if these activities can entertain and educate in the manner a book can.

Some effort seems to be necessary to discover the pleasure of reading books. The first step may, perhaps, be to dedicate a certain part of the day to reading books. The second may be to identify good books in the area of one's interest. The third is to start reading during the dedicated time. I guess, this is the most difficult step. One of the easiest new year resolutions can be to take this step and be familiar with a wonderful world, hitherto unknown.

83.New year resolutions

2011-01-08T13:32:00.003+05:30

One more new year,
The same old resolutions -
To pursue some lofty goal
Or shed some meanness.
More seeds sown
Of depression and discontent,
Of shattered confidence,
Of doubts and worthlessness
Over promises broken
And commitments unkept.
Will a year ever come
That will see resolutions kept
And leave me different
From what I was in previous year?

103.On new year

2011-01-01T14:34:00.001+05:30

One more year has departed. One more year has arrived. Good wishes for the year continue to pour in through SMS and e-mail.Some stray cards have also arrived. Old-timers still believe in adding personal touch to their new year greetings.At the stroke of mid-night, mini-Diwali was observed. Crackers went off. People went ecstatic. Dancing, eating and drinking continued well into the morning- as if the old year had taken away all agonies and misfortunes.

Everything new inspires hope and happiness – be it a year, baby, spouse, friend, car, house….Then, things gradually begin to fall apart.Dashed hopes and frustrations remain.one starts moving away from the old in search of something new and different. The cycle continues as long as one is alive.

We try to figure out what went wrong. Search for excuses begins. Mostly, we blame others for our misfortunes. The process of rationalization begins.Arguments are invented in support of suppositions. Everything that does not support the suppositions is ignored.

This year, let us resolve to look within.Let us look for arguments to nail ourselves and exonerate others.Let us keep our expectations in check. Let us understand the expectations of others from us and live up to the reasonable ones. Maybe, this will help secure the new year, making it a year of fulfilment, happiness and durable relations.

Happy new year.

82.Balance-sheet

2010-12-25T15:57:00.002+05:30

As the year ends,

Let us prepare the account

Of assets acquired and liabilities incurred,

Of money earned and amount spent.

Let us list out purchases made -

Shops and apartments,

Cars and computers,

Air-conditioners and refrigerators,

Ovens and music systems.

Let us list out the winning deals -

The profits made,

The interest earned,

The bonuses received,

The promotions achieved.

And when all is listed out,

Prepare one more list

Of bonds made and those snapped,

Of kindness shown and hurt caused,

Of grudges shed and those nursed,

Of tears brought and smiles given.

The balance-sheet of the year

Must not be left incomplete.

81. Old calendar and new year

2010-12-18T15:07:00.004+05:30

I shudder to see the new calendar

Getting printed and readied frantically

To be hung on drawing room walls,

Snatching my pride of place from me.

The whole world is in eager wait

To kick the old year to dustbin,

Getting ready to welcome the new

With cakes, candles and crackers.

That will be the moment of my demise

A tragic end to a year of glory,

I look at the new year with trepidation

It will take away my empire from me.

102.Disrespect to words of respect

2010-12-11T17:21:00.002+05:30

We,the people of India, seem to enjoy squeezing out every bit of respect from words that convey respect. Words which once conveyed a lot of respect soon come to be used in such weird contexts that they start causing offence.

One such word is ‘Bhaiya’ which literally means brother. It has become quite common to use this word for milkmen, washermen,etc.Who has not heard the milkman being described as ‘doodhwala bhaiya’ ?

‘Bhai’ which has the same meaning as ‘Bhaiya’ is much more maligned. It means the don who is worthy of fear and not love.People say, don’t take liberty with him. ‘Bhai ka aadmi hai’.

‘Dada’ has met the same fate. The word means grandfather, but it has come to mean the don. Like you say, ‘is ilake ka dada’.The poor grandfather can never think of being a ‘dada’.

Another such word is ‘Guru’ which means the teacher.It has now come to mean cunning. People say, keep away from him. ‘Bahut guru aadmi hai’. The word is also sometimes used for waiters in small restaurants. When you want tea, you shout at the top of your voice and say,’Guru, ek cup chai dena’.

I have found a common thread in the words that are misused. They all represent the masculine gender. I wonder why the most respectful masculine words are identified and then used in the most inappropriate contexts. Is there a foreign hand ? Is it a feminine hand?

It is time, all men unite and protect the few masculine words of honour they are left with. This is clearly a case of gender discrimination.

80.Bird, infuse life

2010-12-04T16:29:00.001+05:30

The sky is overcast,

Darkness prevails in the day,

No sign of life anywhere,

Not a window is open.

No laughter of the child,

No whining of the sick,

No wailing of the bereaved,

No sound of breathing -

Not a thing stirs,

Unbridled silence rules.

Bird, come flying from somewhere,

Sing loudly in your sweet voice,

Drive this melancholy away,

This darkness, this silence,

Infuse new life in things dead,

Don’t hold anything back today.

101.Bachelors on wait

2010-11-28T18:50:00.001+05:30

TOI recently carried a report on the Barwaan Kala and Barwaan Khurd villages, situated in the Kaimur hills of Bihar.Among about 200 tribal families living in the two villages, there are more than 115 bachelors.Since there is no road connectivity, outsiders don’t want their daughters to be married off in these villages.The villages can be reached only after four hours of tracking through difficult terrain. Absence of a road has also led to dearth of medical and other basic facilities. Which parents would like to send their daughters to such villages? Marrying locally is not permissible, as a girl from the same village is like a sister.

I think, not just in Barwaan, but at many other places, average boys are in danger of remaining bachelors for ever. The prevailing sex ratio and the changing attitudes have begun to make their impact.

Not long back, boys were in a commanding position. They could afford to be unfair and inhuman.They thought, they were doing great favour to the girls they were agreeing to marry. They were in a position to dictate terms. They did not mind rejecting one girl after another in search of the ones that ‘deserved’ them. Parents of jokers could ask for hefty dowry. Girls and their parents had to suffer the humiliation in silence.

Not any more. One can come across a large number of eligible bachelors, well-educated and well-employed, eagerly waiting for their brides. They are willing to make compromises and they don’t forget to declare that they are not looking for any dowry. They are bachelors not out of choice. They are waiting for girls who will find them likeable and give them the elusive nod.

79. Questions to the bird

2010-11-24T12:18:00.001+05:30

Bird, where have you come from?

Which branch did you sit on,

Which field did you hop on,

Which balcony did you visit,

Which tree is your nest on?

Through which path did you fly,

How high did you touch the sky,

Which other birds did you meet

Which other places did you see?

Which song did you sing,

Which forest did you bring alive,

Which pond did you drink from,

Which dangers did you escape?

Bird, which souls did you touch,

Which lives did you change?

100. Human beings and humanity

2010-11-17T12:30:00.003+05:30

In the Lalita Park area of Delhi, a five-storey residential building collapsed last Monday, killing at least 68 people and leaving over 150 injured. The tragedy brought out several contradictory aspects of human nature. Greed, benevolence, affection – all were on display.

The building was not very old. It was initially a one-room unit which grew into a 5-storey building about 15 years back. The foundation was weak and the design was faulty. Apparently, the builder was in connivance with police and civic authorities and all were driven by greed. No one had any concern for the safety of the people who would come to live in the building.

Once the tragedy took place, a large number of people tried to take advantage of the situation. They were not looking for survivors in the rubble. They were looking for valuables.They thronged hospitals not to help the injured, but to rob them of whatever little the tragedy had left them with.

There were others who rushed to the site immediately after the tragedy and used their own resources to pull people out of the rubble and take the injured to hospitals. But for their help, many more would have lost their lives.

There was also a mother who kept her baby glued to her chest after the building collapsed over them. The fact that both of them lost the battle of life does not undermine the sacrifice and love of the mother for the baby.

In all tragedies, the script is more or less the same. The challenge is how to make human beings more humane.

99. Light in Deepawali

2010-11-06T15:42:00.002+05:30

The festival of lights- Deepawali – was celebrated yesterday. While lamps are lit during most festivals, Deepawali is, perhaps, the only festival that is dedicated to the lighting of lamps.

Human beings don’t like darkness. Darkness means uncertainty and danger, and inspires fear. Acts that the society does not approve of mostly take place in darkness. Light, on the other hand, inspires hope. It means certainty and safety. It shows us direction and gives us confidence. Perhaps, this is the reason why Deepawali is a very popular festival. It is no longer confined to a particular community.

For some years, at least in cities, Deepawali has not been the festival that its name suggests. “Deep” or lamp with a wick is a rarity.There was a time when Deepawali meant rows of lit earthen lamps.The flames of the lamps used to flicker in the wind.Constant care had to be taken to stop them from getting extinguished. Wicks had to be adjusted or changed and oil had to be filled and refilled.

Electrical bulbs have now taken the place of earthen lamps.The bulbs do not require much care. Wind cannot extinguish them. Once you switch them on, they continue to give light in a pre-determined manner.The amount and colour of the light they emit is controlled. Whether and how much they will flicker is decided in advance. They do not require close and constant involvement and supervision.

Although they do not have the same impact as earthen lamps, electrical bulbs do give light. Light is what we love. So, as long as Deepawali remains the festival of lights, we will continue to enjoy it.

78.Bird, come for a while

2010-10-31T16:05:00.001+05:30

Bird, come for a while,

Open your throat wide,

Sing some song of hope

In your sweet, haunting voice.

A mere look at your feathers

May bring colours back to me,

Just a few notes of your song

May bring music alive in me.

Flutter your wings a little

Life may stir within me,

Turn your head this way and that,

The unseen may be seen by me.

Bird, spare some moments for me

Sit for a while in my balcony,

May be, by the time you leave,

I am ready to fly with you.

77.For whom do you sing,bird?

2010-10-24T16:18:00.003+05:30

For whom do you sing,bird?

There is no one to listen,

No one to rush out,

No one to egg you on

By responding to your calls.

No one will seek you out

From behind the veil of leaves,

No one will hop after you

Until you fly into the sky.

No one is around

To admire your lovely wings,

No one is here

To marvel at your majestic flight.

No one has time any more

For you and your songs,

In the world of your own

You must learn to live now.

76.Bird,don’t fly

2010-10-18T21:28:00.002+05:30

Bird, don’t fly.

Keep sitting on the branch

Or cheerfully hop across

To another branch nearby,

But don’t ever try to fly.

Good, you know how to fly,

But why use this skill ?

Why force me to clip your wings ?

Why make me suffer this pain ?

Bird, I love you a lot,

But can’t let you fly,

I feel small when you fly

And scared when you soar.

98.Don’t forget names

2010-10-10T11:35:00.003+05:30

Most people are very possessive about their names.They have grown up with their names and don’t want others to take any intended or unintended liberty with these.If you abuse someone, he may ignore it, but if you call someone by a different name, he will most certainly mind. This is blasphemy you can’t be allowed to commit.

Try calling Shyam as Subodh and Rani as Renu.You will hardly have any scope of prolonging the conversation. If any conversation does take place at all, it may not be to your liking.

Most people expect others to remember their names after the first meeting itself. They have been used to people calling them by their names effortlessly. It comes to them as a shock if someone cannot recall their names.

People also take offence if someone misspells their names. Before sending out invites for weddings, get-togethers, etc., spend some time getting the spellings of the names of the invitees correct. Of course, you may safely avoid this procedure for those you don’t want to attend.

If you want to impress someone, spend some time memorizing his or her name. Practise pronouncing it correctly. Nothing more is required to satisfy his ego. If you can call someone by his correct name, it may not matter even if you call him names.

75. Bird, return early

2010-10-02T12:30:00.002+05:30

Bird, don’t fly too far,

You may not find your tree

When you return in the evening.

The nest that you built

Straw by straw over weeks

May not be there,

Chicks for whom you fetch grains,

Held carefully in your beak

May all be gone.

Bird, the city is growing,

Progress is touching everything,

Learn to return early

Evening may be too far.

97.Distorted and pet names

2010-09-25T14:26:00.002+05:30

I find it very amusing that parents who choose the names of their children after a lot of research, study and debate often feel the need to distort them. Thus, Radheyshyam becomes Radhu, Dileep becomes Dilu and so on.Sometimes, parents make a total departure from the names they allocated to their children and give them pet names.Distorted and pet names seem to better express the love of parents for their children.Actual names are overused and boring.What is the fun in calling your child by the name everyone calls him by. Parents are entitled to some exclusiveness.

Unfortunately, outsiders also get to know about the distorted or pet names and start calling the children by these names.Such a situation can be avoided only if the parents use the distorted and pet names in private, and actual names in the public. This, however, is next to impossible.

The children, when they are young, do not mind being called by the distorted and pet names. But once they grow up, they are not comfortable with every Tom,Dick and Harry conveying his love to them through distorted and pet names.By now, however, the situation becomes irreversible.

The names which once conveyed the love of the parents for their children become a major source of friction between them.Parents may do everything possible for their children, but the children will not forgive the parents for distorting their names and giving them absurd-sounding pet names.

74.Blood

2010-09-18T16:14:00.003+05:30

Blood flows through the gutter

Mixed with muck and soiled water,

Hindu blood, Muslim blood,

Christian and Sikh blood,

All with the same redness,

Similarly liquid and shining,

Equally capable of arousing

A helpless feeling of waste.

Give butchers free passage,

Let them come, let them see,

Let them separate the community's blood

That deserves a more honourable flow.

73.For instant fame

2010-09-11T12:03:00.001+05:30

I will abuse a whole community,

Threaten to burn a holy book,

Address hordes of hysterical mobs,

Grant fiery interviews to channels.

I will hand out death sentences,

Announce rewards for executors,

I will lead noisy marches

To places that need demolition.

I will ban books and films,

Put paintings and photographs to flame,

I will blacken faces of people

And pour venom against the noble.

I will do this and more

For instant fame and following,

It takes a lot of time

To do good and be famous.

96.Frantic search for names

2010-09-05T20:51:00.002+05:30

Modern-day parents attach a lot of importance to the names of their children.Even before a child is born, frantic search for the name by which it will be known begins. It hardly matters whether the child is a boy or a girl. Parents prepare for both eventualities. There is no time to lose when things are as urgent as naming a child.

There are books on names that sell like hot cakes among prospective parents. These are studied carefully.Choices are narrowed down, individual names are debated endlessly and a tedious process of elimination starts. Books on how to impart moral values to children are hardly purchased. Those on child health are not much in demand.Books on names score over all other types of books.

After a long and agonising process, names are finally determined, often to be changed quickly. It is either too long or too short.It sounds either too old or too strange. Parents are difficult creatures to satisfy.

Children would be turning in the wombs of their mothers when they find their parents burning so much of midnight oil on their names.Shakespeare, who failed to realise the importance of names, would be turning in his grave.

95.What is in a name?

2010-08-29T15:36:00.002+05:30

There is nothing in a name, Shakespeare wanted us to believe. A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.That was several hundred years ago. Even at that time, names did matter. Otherwise, why would Shakespeare talk about this? In today’s world when people attach more value to appearances than to innate qualities,names matter much more.

Often, we know the name of a person before meeting him or her. We immediately form an image in our mind about the age and attitude of the person.If it is an old-fashioned name, the image is that of an old and obstinate person – a person difficult to deal with.If the name sounds modern, the image is that of a young person with forward-looking attitude.The image may not match the reality, but it prevents us from looking at the person with an open mind.Even before meeting us, the person has lost the benefit of our unbiased or objective approach.

In another sense also, names do matter.If one has a pleasing first name, others would like to call one by that name.This will pave the way for a warm personal relationship.If the first name is odd, difficult or tongue-twisting, others would avoid using it and call the person by his or her surname.This will bring in a formal touch to the relationship.If both the name and surname are difficult, it would be a completely hopeless case.

People try to hide their odd-sounding names more than they try to hide their vices. Some try to modernise their old-fashioned names in innovative ways. Some take legal recourse to change their names. The last option is like cosmetic surgery with one striking difference. After cosmetic surgery, one cannot see what it corrected, but after change of name, many would continue to call one by one’s previous name out of ignorance or mischief.

94.Doctors are next to God

2010-08-21T19:18:00.002+05:30

I hugely admire doctors.They are the ones who can save lives.They may not be able to bring a dead one alive, but in many cases, they can stop one from dying.They can make life worth living by taking care of diseases, discomforts and disabilities. Brain, heart, eyes, ears, throat, knees, lungs, stomach, liver, kidney – there is nothing they cannot fix. With their skills improving and better technology at their command, they are able to save more and more lives with each passing day. While other sections of the society have useful roles to play, the contribution of doctors is unparalleled. I put them next to God. God gives life,but doctors keep it disease-free and ensure that it is not snuffed out prematurely.

I feel disappointed when I read newspaper reports that the number of children wanting to be doctors is stagnating over the years. There is a significant jump every year in the number of those opting to be engineers, MBAs and Civil Servants, but alas, the situation is different when it comes to medical profession.

One reason cited for this trend is that medical studies and profession demand very hard work at least during the initial years.The gestation period is long.The returns are not proportionate. This is dissuading many from becoming doctors.

I think, the biggest factor is that we have not been able to give doctors the respect they deserve.We have not been able to create a halo around this noble profession. If you ask people to name five top politicians, bureaucrats, industrialists or sportspersons, they will be able to do.But if you ask them to name five top doctors, they will give up.

Ours is a vast country with a huge population.We badly need a steady supply of competent and dedicated doctors to keep the population in good health. If we can’t give them more money, at least, let us give them more respect.

72. Perplexing urge

2010-08-14T11:14:00.001+05:30

By the side of a narrow path

I see a huge pit -

Dark,deep and dangerous -

To be avoided at all costs,

But my feet drag me away

From the safe narrow path

To the pit I wish to avoid.

The urge defies reason

Coaxes me to court trouble,

Why doesn’t safety excite?

Why is danger so tempting?

71.The wall

2010-08-07T14:44:00.001+05:30

I protect from harm

You and your close ones,

Standing tall and solid

To keep intruders at bay.

I stop cold wind

From biting you in winter

Just as I block hot wind

That burns in summer.

I join other friendly walls

To make your house

And in return I receive

Nails driven deep into me.

93.Rain in Delhi

2010-07-18T15:05:00.002+05:30

Finally, Delhi has had some rain, but the experience is far from enjoyable. It has provided only momentary relief, leaving behind a highly sultry weather.While it poured, it clogged drains, uprooted trees, blocked roads and claimed lives.Delhi is hardly equipped to handle even fleeting spells of rain. It seems to be more at ease with hot dry weather.At least, life goes on as usual. I shudder to think of the misery the rain brings to the homeless in our cities.

The rainy season always reminds me of my childhood in a small town. There were days when the rain refused to take any breather, but normal life was never disrupted.The drainage system had the experience of handling the pressure.Taking bath and playing in the rain was a heavenly experience.It was great pleasure watching the rain from the window of my room. Just outside the window, there were trees which swayed in the rain, but always held their own.Tea used to taste much better during the rains.It often used to be accompanied by steaming home-made pakoras.

Sometimes, I used to play cards with family members or friends while it rained outside.In the nights, the rain-drops fell on the tin roof and produced a beautiful sound. I used to keep awake to listen to the sound.After the rains were over, trees looked fresh and clean, their leaves glowing in the sun.

Among dense flats of Delhi, there is no opening for rain drops and no place for swinging trees. There is no time to sip tea or play cards. The rain is so miserly that by the time one gets ready to take bath, it is already gone.

70. ‘I love you’

2010-07-11T12:01:00.001+05:30

Tattered paper gone yellow

Not pleasant to smell,

Not easy to handle,

But not to be thrown away.

The three words on it

By some hurried hand scribbled

After careful scrutiny of emotions,

Ending a long agonising wait.

The words written, but never uttered,

On fragile paper, but in strong ink

More precious than any treasure

To be preserved carefully, delicately.

Through these she comes alive

In all her beauty and youth

Bringing back sweetness of days

And moments of happiness

Long forgotten……

92.On beaches

2010-07-04T11:06:00.005+05:30

If there is one place where I don’t get bored, it is beaches. It offers so much variety, so much turbulence and so much tranquillity that time just flies.No two beaches are the same and no two days on a beach are the same.

Recently, I visited some beaches near Mangalore. I hardly felt like going anywhere else. Taking long walks, exploring the vegetation nearby,feeling the waves on my legs with an occasional wave surprising with its height and catching me unawares, looking at seaweeds and oysters brought to the shore by the waves, small boats going up and down the waves in the distance, revellers enjoying themselves in their own way – there was no dearth of activity.

What struck me particularly was the changing colours of the sky over the ocean. With the sun preparing to set , the sky appears to be so beautiful. Sometimes, the sun goes behind the clouds, sometimes partially comes out, sometimes just peeps through the clouds and sometimes fully dodges the clouds. Each action presents a different riot of colours on the horizon. After the sun sets, the colours are much more beautiful. One can spend hours, simply looking at the changing colours of the sky.

On the beaches, I also feel very humble. The ocean is so mighty and vast that the vanity of a human being simply vanishes.

(pics courtesy Aviral)

69.Evening over the ocean

2010-06-27T14:28:00.002+05:30

Over the ocean, in the sky,

Setting sun plays with drifting clouds,

Sometimes hiding, sometimes emerging,

Offering bouquets of changing colours.

Tired, the sun retires for the night,

Its colours still adorning the sky

Until the moon and stars appear

To have their own fill of the ocean.

Waves keep coming to the shore

And returning with the same rhythm

To tirelessly check if all is well

As darkness takes over.

Trees turn into silhouettes,

Standing still in their places

As if to maintain careful vigil

Before the sun comes out again.

(pics courtsey Aviral)

91.In praise of fathers

2010-06-20T11:11:00.001+05:30

Newspaper supplements today are full of write-ups in praise of fathers.Children have written flattering messages about their fathers on the occasion of the Father’s Day. ‘You are the best dad’,’you are the biggest gift of God to me’, ‘whatever I am today is because of you, dad’… the messages are on predictable lines.I wonder how seriously fathers should take such tempting noises.

Whenever we talk of parental love, we think of the love of the mother for her children. She is the one who willingly suffers all ignominies and deprivations for the sake of her children. She is sacrifice personified. The father, on the other hand, is the one who is more bothered about exercising his authority. While the mother is busy bringing up the children, the father is busy flirting with other women. He parts with a portion of his income and thinks, that is it.He is not willing to compromise on his club visits, his gossip sessions with friends and his other interests even if his children badly require him.

The truth is that fathers love their children as much as mothers.They are equally concerned about the welfare of their children. They are as willing to make sacrifices. They are also human beings.

True, the contribution of mothers is much more valuable than that of fathers.After all, it is they who keep their children in their wombs for nine months.It is they who feed their children during the first few months.The bond is much more intimate - physically and emotionally.If it is a choice between the father and the mother, the mother must have the first right over her children.But the father does not deserve to be regarded as an unconcerned, indifferent stranger- incapable of loving his children and making sacrifices for them.

I am happy that someone thought of celebrating the affection of fathers for their children and set aside a day in the year as the Father’s Day.

68.Lesson from leaves

2010-06-05T21:34:00.001+05:30

Billions of plants and trees

Carry trillions of leaves on them

Very close, yet spread out

To let the sun and rain through.

Human beings, much fewer in number

Try to block everything

Often at their own cost,

Often receiving blows and wounds.

Why can’t they learn from leaves?

Why can’t they come close,

Yet spread out and give space?

90.Vanishing yellow canopy

2010-05-30T10:50:00.002+05:30

Before

Now

Amaltas is gradually vanishing from gardens and streets. Most trees now display green leaves with hardly any hint of yellow. Some trees, however, are still resisting the pressure , but very soon, their stubbornness will melt. They will have to shed their flowers.Amaltas lovers will then have a long wait of about a year before they could see the flowers again.

While Amaltas is all but gone, there are others like bougainvillea and sunflower that make the scorching and drab summer of Delhi somewhat pleasant and colourful.These can be seen in nooks and corners of parks, many of them growing wildly. Before or after a long hot day, Delhiites can have their eye-fill of these flowers and be grateful for the little mercies of nature in a rather hostile climate.

To me, these flowers are not as inspiring as Amaltas, but we value them more, because they are not as easily available as Amaltas. They are seen at limited places in limited quantities.We seek them out, gaze at them and admire them. After all, there is some value in holding back.

67. Love letter

2010-05-22T21:43:00.001+05:30

My maiden love letter to you -

Composed with care and emotion

Put in a shining pink envelope

Your name lovingly scribbled on top

With the street and town you bless -

Has to be dropped in a suffocating red box.

Soiled hands will fiddle with it

Strangers will toss it around

Overfilled gunny bags will carry my letter

In the company of heart-breaking tidings.

My letter will be pressed tightly

On the carrier of some rickety cycle

To be heartlessly thrust in a small box

Or thrown on the floor of your veranda.

My dear, how much ignominy it will suffer

Before my letter lands in your hands ?

89.Yellow canopy over Delhi

2010-05-15T11:13:00.011+05:30

Delhi is flush with beautiful yellow flowers these days. Amaltas is in full bloom.Driving down certain streets, you can see yellow canopies as far as your eyes go.Parks, gardens,school grounds,colonies - Amaltas has left nothing untouched.It is amazing that a tree which is hardly worth noticing during the rest of the year suddenly comes into its own around May- as if to compensate for the scorching heat of Delhi.Most people want to avoid the city during this part of the year when it is in the grip of ferocious hot winds. One of the few things that may cheer you up at this time is Amaltas in its full glory.

When Amaltas blooms, you can hardly see any leaf on the tree for a few days. It is all yellow with no hint of green.Amaltas does not give its flowers away in a miserly and ready-to-prick manner.It gives voluntarily, cheerfully and in plenty.The flowers fall on the ground in droves, laying a welcome yellow carpet beneath the tree.Amaltas knows no holding back.

I like the name 'Amaltas', although I don't know its meaning.It is so different and so musical. It aptly reflects the beauty and tenderness of the flower.

I feel, we tend to neglect Amaltas, because it is easily available. We would have appreciated it much more if it were not as generous as it is.

88.In praise of dentists

2010-05-08T11:42:00.006+05:30

Every second person now-a-days seems to have a dental problem. Toothache is much more common than heartache.People reach their workplaces late or leave early,because they have an appointment with their dentists.Others in the medical profession must be envious of their dental counterparts and must be ruing their decision not to opt for dentistry. Of all parts of the human body, teeth seem to be perpetually in need of fixing.

We hear about extraction, drilling, pulling, reconstruction, etc., every day.It is difficult to imagine that such ferocious words are used in relation to a part of the human body.The poor patient is awe-struck even before the treatment begins.The instruments lying around the dental table are also not less awe-inspiring. Often, the work cannot be finished in one sitting. RCT to extraction to bridging to capping to monitoring- it is a long unending journey.Once you visit a dentist, you must be ready for a life-long association.

In our childhood days, we never had the fortune of visiting dentists. There were none around. Toothache used to be treated with clove oil, camphor and other home remedies.Teeth used to fall out by themselves, unaided by dentists. No antibiotics or painkillers were required. Fractured teeth were allowed to remain where they were until they gave up. Toothache would make the patient whine for a couple of days and then everything would fall in place.

I am not sure if modern dentistry has helped us chew better or more with less pain.These doubts must be bothering many, but none is willing to take a chance. Dentists are able to cast a spell on their patients despite all their intimidating expressions and instruments.

Togetherness

2010-05-03T21:51:00.002+05:30

Let us learn something from them.

Another pic from Jaisalmer

2010-05-02T21:37:00.001+05:30

66.Boy at traffic junction

2010-05-02T17:36:00.002+05:30

Clad in sweat-soaked tatters,

The boy meanders through traffic

Unmindful of the lurking danger,

Looking for the swankiest car

And the kindest woman inside.

The boy seeks out women,

As they are kinder than men,

That is what he learnt from his mother

Who offered him bread only at times,

But love every day- without fail.

The boy keeps running from dawn to dusk,

Sometimes succeeding, sometimes failing,

The junction is his workplace as also his home,

It is his playground as also his school,

He knows of no world outside the junction.

Himalayas from Mussorie

2010-04-30T21:46:00.000+05:30

Another pic by Aviral(as if the watermark is not enough!)

Sunset in Jaisalmer

2010-04-24T17:06:00.003+05:30

This pic was taken by Aviral, my son when we visited Jaisalmer

65. Deal with God

2010-04-24T15:55:00.002+05:30

Why do you make humans suffer
From sickness- mental or physical,
Why is pain- real or imagined,
Of self or of others- a part of life?

Why do some depart suddenly,
Leaving close ones shattered,
Why do some die in the womb
While some outlive their purpose?

Give all humans a blissful life
Free of disease and suffering,
Give just fifty or sixty years
But devoid of rude surprises.

O' God, break your silence,
Make up your mind, and say,
Are you ready for the bargain ?

87.IIT recipe for stress

2010-04-18T10:40:00.002+05:30

Indian Institutes of Technology(IITs) are among the most prestigious institutes of learning in India. Every child who dreams of being an engineer wants to get into one of the IITs.The admission takes place through an entrance examination, called IITJEE, where lakhs of students compete for a few thousand seats.

This year, IITJEE took place on April 11.The outcry over the goof ups in the examination refuses to die down even a week later. There are complaints of wrong questions, questions out of the syllabus,very lengthy and difficult questions and serious printing mistakes, especially in the Hindi version of the papers. There are vociferous demands for holding the examination again.

There is little chance of such demands being met, as it would amount to admission of failure. It is strange that the best technology institute in the country cannot hold its most important examination properly. When eyes are fixed rather high, it is difficult to see small ground-level things like proof-reading.

This brings me to a bigger question. What do we want to achieve by setting the standards of IITJEE way above those of the Board examinations.There is hardly any time gap between these two examinations, but their levels are very different. A child is at a loss to understand how to strike a balance between the preparations for the two examinations. He faces this dilemma for years and pays through his nose to coaching institutes which promise to help him resolve it.

Quite often, the child does poorly in both IITJEE and Board examinations. He has to waste one whole year after doing his plus two before he can really take a good shot at IITJEE.

Why can't questions in IITJEE be set on the pattern of Board examinations? What is the intention? Is it to test the merit of the candidates or is it to overawe them?Why are we putting youngsters in a highly stressful and difficult situation? Why are we robbing an entire generation of the pleasures of learning?

Will someone find time to introspect and answer these questions?

64.Young green leaf

2010-04-10T16:32:00.002+05:30

(Pl. read with poem no. 63- Victim of greed)

Don't call my ambition my greed,

Don't insult me with stray remarks.

More sunshine and abundant water,

Is it a crime to strive for ?

Is it a sin to detest drabness,

Is it wrong to eye a lively world?

Is it good to follow the timid

Who enjoy no thrill of risk,

Who are deaf to their heart's voice,

Who keep sulking wherever they are?

Death is certain sooner or later,

What if it knocks a little early?

Isn't it better to be foolish and perish

Than to be wise and live in denial?

86.Plight of the old

2010-04-03T15:15:00.002+05:30

Newspapers have recently come out with some surveys to show the miseries of the aged in our society. It is good that media has started paying some attention to this neglected section that has hardly any option but to suffer in silence.

We keep reading or hearing about cases where old people living on their own or left behind in their homes by their working children are murdered or injured by robbers. On roads, they can be easily waylaid- unable to resist, raise alarm or run.

We keep hearing about cruelty against the aged- children physically torturing or even killing their parents for property. Once relieved of property, they are on occasions thrown out of their homes to fend for themselves.

It is difficult to imagine how much torture- physical or emotional- the aged are subjected to in their homes.Frustration is often vented on the weak and who is weaker than the aged. They have no future as far as income generation is concerned. The last drop of juice has been squeezed out of them.They are seen as a huge burden on the family. They keep falling ill,are unable to do household chores,can be quite embarrassing before visitors and are boring to their modern grandchildren. In today's small apartments, they occupy precious space. They take away a big slice of limited family incomes.They restrict freedom of family members who can neither take them out nor leave them behind.Their death is keenly awaited.

Children forget all their parents had done for them. They forget that they will also grow old someday.

63.Victim of greed

2010-03-27T17:18:00.003+05:30

Young green leaf,
Why did you leave the tree?
True, it was in a lonely corner,
True, sunshine and water were not aplenty,
But you were not dying.

Discontent filled your days there,
Your heart ached for a lively corner,
For more water and sunshine,
For greener, stronger and taller trees.

You have taken the flight today,
Severed the bond in search of new ties,
But this is not the world for you,
No arms are spread out for you.

In new world you have no place,
To old world you cannot return,
Your fate is to lie on the ground,
Ready to be trampled by passers-by,
Ready to be tossed around by winds.

You must turn pale and wither away,
Young leaf, you are a victim of your greed.

62.The Seed

2010-03-20T16:08:00.002+05:30

I am a tiny weak seed,

Sow me in soft soil,

Water me without fail,

In no time will I sprout.

Show me a little care,

I will soon be a plant

That will grow with time

Into a big strong tree.

The big tree will yield

Billions of tiny seeds

That if tended well

Will grow into strong trees.

I am not a poor little seed,

I am a tree, I am a forest,

I am good enough to cover

Your whole world with greenery.