Afterlife...

Twice in my life, I thought I was going to die. I remember those days vividly... not the date and time, or the clothes that I was wearing or those of others involved... Just the event and what was running in my mind.

I was probably studying in II Std... My cousin's family was going out on a trip to Mysore, Brindavan gardens, Jog falls and areas around there. I went along... We were standing on the banks of the river(the name I don't recall...). We were standing on the rocks along the shore...the cold water climbed the rocks the lick our feet and receded slowly... I have no idea how I slipped. And straight into the cold waters I went. I panicked. I had no idea how to swim! I tried to come above the water... It wasn't too deep, but somehow I was just not able to. I knew I was bobbing up and down below the water, and was moving towards the deeper side. As I watched the bubbles from my mouth escape through the surface, the only thought that crossed my mind was "This is it. I am over..." One of my older cousins had the presence of mind to give me a hand and pull me up. Thanks to her. I am breathing today!

The second incident was more recent... We were had gone to Wonder La, an amusement park in Bangalore. There was this ride called "Insanity". I got onto it and locked myself in my seat... It was the first time I was taking one of those rides and I wasn't exactly sure how the locking mechanism worked. The supervisor didn't come to check the safety latch, and the ride commenced. As the seats were moving in all possible directions, I could hear my seat making creaking noises... and I was sure that the lock would give way and I would come hurtling to the floor. "I am going to die... "... this was the only thing I thought through the ride. Once it was over, I got off to safety... I learnt that there was an electronic locking mechanism apart from the mechanical one. So it was rather fool-proof and I had worried without reason...

About a month ago, (on 26th Nov, 2008 to be more precise), hundreds of people lost their lives to the madness of 10 men who had no independence in thought or action... I can only think of the two times in my life that I thought I was going to die...

Impact analysis

He was rolling on the ground... stood up, dusted himself, picked up his stuff and started walking.

All that caught me was the white shirt with the patch... not the fall, not the recovery... just the impact...

Essence of India...

“I am proud to belong to a religion which has taught the world both tolerance and universal acceptance.
We believe not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true.
I am proud to belong to a nation which has sheltered the persecuted and the refugees of all religions and all nations of the earth.
I am proud to tell you that we have gathered in our bosom the purest remnant of the Israelites, who came to Southern India and took refuge with us in the very year in which their holy temple was shattered to pieces by Roman tyranny.
I am proud to belong to the religion which has sheltered and is still fostering the remnant of the grand Zoroastrian nation.
I will quote to you, brethren, a few lines from a hymn which I remember to have repeated from my earliest boyhood, which is every day repeated by millions of human beings: ‘As the different streams having their sources in different paths which men take through different tendencies, various though they appear, crooked or straight, all lead to Thee.’ ”

-Swami Vivekananda

“…That we turn always the few distinct truths and the symbols or the particular discipline of a religion into a hard and fast dogmas, is a sign that as yet we are only infants in the spiritual knowledge and are yet far from the science of the Infinite.”
"...The mind is not the highest possible power of consciousness; for mind is not in possession of Truth, but only its ignorant seeker.”

- Sri Aurobindo

Geelani says he is Pakistani - to Bharath Chchodo!!!

If Geelani feels he is Pakistani, then no one is really holding him back here. He is free to cross the border and join his land. So are all the others who feel the same way. They are hypocrits who bask in all the amenities provided by the Indian government and shout praises of another country. What has Pakistan done for them... apart from bringing in militants who have destroyed the peace of their lives? Even now, it seems that Kashmiris want to be Pakistanis... but it is probably only the voice of Pakistani plants screaming in the valley... how can we differentiate?

It is not a question of religion here... It is not about Islam or Hinduism. It is about the land you belong to... the mother that has given you everything... It is about Nationalism.

Kashmir Bharath ki hai... agar aap Pakistani ho, to Bharath Chchodo!!!

Independence Day

Its the eve of Independence Day in India... and we have a burning crown! I am speaking about the fire that the Amarnath land row has sparked in the northernmost state of India - Jammu and Kashmir.
I have been reading extensively on this issue. It is difficult to comprehend the action taken at the Centre. "The leaders from the valley" don't even feel like they are supposed to care for the interests of the people from Jammu. They are part of the same state... and it does not really seem to matter to them.

There were protests in the valley for a couple of days, and the land allotment order has been reversed. Jammu has been burning for almost 2 months now, and there has been no visible response from the government. A mute all party meeting has no solution to offer...
I am taken over by some pretty strong sentiments about a rather sensitive topic... our national leader, Gandhi. The Partition was not decided over night. There were several debates, and the majority decision was against it. But something seemed to have taken over Gandhi, who went on his hunger-strike for the country to be divided. And the others actually acceded to his whims... Jinnah may have harboured a personal interest in the Partition because that would give him a country to lead, he was not in the race for the post of PM in India then because Nehru was the favourite.
Partition. An era when a country that had stood united in its struggle for Freedom was thrown into a malicious communal divide. The bloodshed that started at the time of the Partition has not receded even after so many years!!!
The "leaders" who master-minded this Divide lived for hardly a year after the event. But the effects seem to be undying... seems worse than the aftermath of the atomic bomb attack on Hiroshima. The Partition was the parting gift of the British... a deliberate ache in the crown of the country... something that will always be deterrent to the progress of the nation... Maybe if Godse had gotten his act together earlier and killed Gandhi before the Partition, or if Jinnah had left the mortal world a couple of years before he actually did... perhaps our country would have been united at this time... preparing for the celebration of the 61st Independence Day...

Shooting star *

It is the first gold for India at the Beijing... Abhinav Bindra has gone down in History.

It was an ecstatic feeling just to hear that India has won a gold. It is impossible to imagine the levels of euphoria to be the one who won it for her! But he stood as if nothing different from what was expected had happened... He has gotten into the habit of winning. He seems to have the Midas touch.

Congrats Bindra! You've done us all proud.
(Just imagine, his name will be the answer to some Quiz questions that will be conducted in the future...;-) )

Blurred

Cannot see where the quiet waters

Merge into the peaceful skies...

Caught in a world with blurred edges...

The definitions marking boundaries

Dwindle into a nothingness yonder...